JP2016032972A - Vertical take-off and landing aircraft and control method of the same - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a vertical take-off and landing aircraft that stabilizes a current attitude of a body to a target attitude angle early.SOLUTION: A vertical take-off and landing aircraft comprises: a plurality of rotor units for generating thrust; rotor deflecting servo motors 20b-25b for adjusting the direction of the thrust; and a control unit 40 for controlling the magnitude and direction of the thrust. The control unit 40 comprises: an attitude control part 42 for determining the magnitude of the thrust; a position control part 45 for determining the direction of the thrust; a direction correction part 46 for correcting the direction of the thrust so as to bring the direction of the thrust determined by the position control part 45 close to a yaw axis direction, which is orthogonal to a plane where a body is placed, as a difference between a current attitude angle and a target attitude angle gets larger; and a thrust correction part 43 for correcting the magnitude of the thrust so that the magnitude of the thrust determined by the attitude control part 42 becomes larger as a difference between the direction of the thrust corrected by the direction correction part 46 and the yaw axis direction gets larger.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8

Description

  The present invention relates to a vertical take-off and landing aircraft and a control method thereof.

Conventionally, a multi-rotor helicopter including a plurality of rotors that generate thrust is known (see, for example, Patent Document 1 and Non-Patent Document 1).
Patent Document 1 discloses a multi-rotor helicopter that realizes stabilization against a cross wind by inclining the angle of the airframe so as to be able to counter the wind according to the cross wind. Since the multi-rotor helicopter disclosed in Patent Document 1 tilts the angle of the aircraft with respect to the crosswind, the horizontal posture of the aircraft cannot be kept constant.

  On the other hand, Non-Patent Document 1 discloses a quadrotor helicopter including four rotors each capable of deflecting the direction of thrust. Since the quadrotor helicopter disclosed in Non-Patent Document 1 can deflect the direction of thrust in an arbitrary direction, the horizontal posture can be kept constant without tilting the angle of the airframe with respect to the crosswind.

JP 2012-228944 A

Akitaka Imamura, 3 others, “Fixed attitude flight with a vector nozzle quad helicopter”, Japan Aerospace Society, 51st Aircraft Symposium, 1F01, November 20, 2013

Non-Patent Document 1 discloses that a sliding effect can be obtained by deflecting the thrust directions of the four rotors from a vertical direction to a specific direction. Due to this sliding effect, the quadrotor helicopter can be moved to an arbitrary position.
However, if the aircraft is greatly inclined from the horizontal posture due to the influence of crosswinds, etc., if the direction of thrust of the four rotors is deflected in order to move the aircraft due to the sliding effect, the attitude of the aircraft will be changed accordingly. The magnitude of the thrust acting on the adjustment is reduced. Therefore, adjustment of the thrust to stabilize the aircraft to match the horizontal posture is not performed sufficiently, and the current posture of the aircraft is not stable in the horizontal posture, or it takes a long time to stabilize in the horizontal posture. There is a problem that it takes.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and even when the main body is largely inclined from the target posture angle due to the influence of a crosswind or the like, the current posture of the main body is quickly brought to the target posture angle. An object is to provide a vertical take-off and landing aircraft that can be stabilized and a control method thereof.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention employs the following means.
A vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to an aspect of the present invention includes a main body, a plurality of thrust generation units that are arranged at a plurality of positions on a circumference surrounding the main body and generate a thrust that raises the main body, and the plurality A thrust direction adjusting mechanism that adjusts the direction of the thrust generated by each of the thrust generation units, a posture angle detection unit that detects a current posture angle of the main body, a position detection unit that detects a current position of the main body, A control unit that controls the magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units and the direction of the thrust of each of the plurality of thrust generation units adjusted by the thrust direction adjustment mechanism, and A posture control unit that determines a magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units based on the current posture angle and the target posture angle detected by the posture angle detection unit; and the position detection Part A position control unit for determining a direction of the thrust of each of the plurality of thrust generation units adjusted by the thrust direction adjustment mechanism based on the current position and the target position to be detected; the current posture angle and the target posture angle; A direction correcting unit that corrects the direction of the thrust so that the direction of the thrust determined by the position control unit according to the difference between the direction and the reference direction orthogonal to the plane on which the main body is disposed, The magnitude of the thrust is corrected so that the magnitude of the thrust determined by the attitude control unit increases as the difference between the direction of the thrust corrected by the direction correction unit and the reference direction increases. A thrust correction unit.

According to the vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to one aspect of the present invention, the magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units based on the current attitude angle and the target attitude angle detected by the attitude angle detection unit is the attitude control unit. Determined by. Further, the position control unit determines the thrust direction of each of the plurality of thrust generating units adjusted by the thrust direction adjusting mechanism based on the current position and the target position detected by the position detection unit.
The direction of the thrust determined by the position control unit is corrected so as to approach a reference direction orthogonal to the plane on which the main body is arranged as the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle increases. Therefore, when the main body is largely inclined from the target attitude angle due to the influence of crosswinds, etc., the magnitude of the thrust acting on the adjustment of the attitude of the aircraft as the inclination of the thrust direction from the reference direction increases Is suppressed from becoming smaller. This also gives priority to the posture control based on the magnitude of the thrust determined by the posture control unit, rather than the position control based on the direction of the thrust determined by the position control unit.

  Further, the magnitude of the thrust determined by the posture control unit is corrected so as to increase as the difference between the corrected thrust direction and the reference direction increases. For this reason, it is possible to suppress a reduction in the magnitude of the thrust that raises the main body during sliding.

  As described above, according to one aspect of the present invention, even when the main body is largely inclined from the target posture angle due to the influence of crosswind or the like, the current posture of the main body can be stabilized at the target posture angle at an early stage. Can provide a vertical take-off and landing aircraft.

In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to one aspect of the present invention, the direction correction unit is configured to detect the position when a difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is greater than 0 ° and greater than or equal to a first angle of 90 ° or less. The direction of the thrust may be corrected so that the direction of the thrust determined by the control unit becomes the reference direction.
In this way, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or larger than the first angle, the direction of the thrust becomes the reference direction regardless of the direction of the thrust determined by the position control unit. Thus, priority can be given to posture control based on the magnitude of thrust determined by the posture control unit.

In the above configuration, the direction correction unit determines the position control unit when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is less than a second angle that is greater than 0 ° and less than the first angle. You may make it output, without correct | amending the direction of thrust.
Thus, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or smaller than the second angle, priority can be given to position control based on the thrust direction determined by the position control unit.

In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to one aspect of the present invention, each of the plurality of thrust generation units is connected to the drive shaft around the axis, and is connected to the drive shaft according to the rotation of the drive shaft. You may make it provide the rotor which generate | occur | produces the thrust of the direction along an axis line.
By doing in this way, each of several thrust generation part can be set as the structure which generates the thrust by a rotor by rotating a drive shaft with a motor.

In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to one aspect of the present invention, each of the plurality of thrust generation units is attached to the main body via a plurality of attachment shafts extending from the main body, and the thrust direction adjusting mechanism is the attachment The direction of the thrust may be adjusted by swinging the thrust generating portion around an axis.
By doing in this way, the direction of the thrust which each thrust generation part generate | occur | produces can be made to incline from a reference direction by rocking each thrust generation part around the attachment shaft extended from a main body.

  A control method for a vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to an aspect of the present invention includes a main body, and a plurality of thrust generators that are arranged at a plurality of positions on a circumference surrounding the main body and generate thrust to raise the main body. A control method of a vertical take-off and landing aircraft comprising a thrust direction adjusting mechanism that adjusts the direction of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generating units, and a posture angle detection step of detecting a current posture angle of the main body; A posture control step of determining a magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units based on the current posture angle and the target posture angle detected by the posture angle detection unit, and a current position of the main body And a direction of the thrust of each of the plurality of thrust generators adjusted by the thrust direction adjusting mechanism based on the current position and the target position detected by the position detecting step. The direction of the thrust determined by the position control step in response to an increase in the difference between the position control step and the current posture angle and the target posture angle to a reference direction orthogonal to a plane on which the main body is arranged A direction correcting step for correcting the direction of the thrust so as to approach, and the thrust determined by the posture control step in accordance with a difference between the direction of the thrust corrected by the direction correcting step and the reference direction And a thrust correcting step for correcting the magnitude of the thrust so that the magnitude of the thrust increases.

According to the control method of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to one aspect of the present invention, the magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units is based on the current posture angle and the target posture angle detected by the posture angle detection step. It is determined by the attitude control process. In addition, the direction of the thrust of each of the plurality of thrust generating units adjusted by the thrust direction adjusting mechanism is determined by the position control step based on the current position and the target position detected by the position detection step.
The direction of the thrust determined by the position control step is corrected so as to approach a reference direction orthogonal to the plane on which the main body is arranged as the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle increases. Therefore, when the main body is largely inclined from the target attitude angle due to the influence of crosswinds, etc., the magnitude of the thrust acting on the adjustment of the attitude of the aircraft as the inclination of the thrust direction from the reference direction increases Is suppressed from becoming smaller. This also gives priority to the posture control based on the magnitude of the thrust determined by the posture control step over the position control based on the direction of the thrust determined by the position control step.

  Further, the magnitude of the thrust determined by the posture control step is corrected so as to increase as the difference between the corrected thrust direction and the reference direction increases. For this reason, it is possible to suppress a reduction in the magnitude of the thrust that raises the main body during sliding.

  Thus, according to the control method for a vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to one aspect of the present invention, even if the main body is largely inclined from the target attitude angle due to the influence of a crosswind or the like, the current attitude of the main body is set to the target attitude. It is possible to provide a control method for a vertical take-off and landing aircraft that can be stabilized at an early stage.

In the method for controlling a vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to one aspect of the present invention, the direction correction step is performed when a difference between the current attitude angle and the target attitude angle is greater than 0 ° and greater than or equal to a first angle of 90 ° or less. The direction of the thrust may be corrected so that the direction of the thrust determined by the position control step becomes the reference direction.
In this way, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or larger than the first angle, the direction of the thrust is set to be the reference direction regardless of the direction of the thrust determined by the position control process. Thus, priority can be given to posture control based on the magnitude of thrust determined by the posture control step.

In the above configuration, the position control step determines the position control step when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is less than a second angle that is larger than 0 ° and smaller than the first angle. The direction of the thrust may not be corrected.
In this way, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or smaller than the second angle, the position control step is determined rather than the posture control based on the magnitude of the thrust determined by the posture control step. Position control based on the direction of thrust can be prioritized.

  According to the present invention, a vertical take-off and landing aircraft that can quickly stabilize the current posture of the main body to the target posture angle even when the main body is largely inclined from the target posture angle due to the influence of crosswind and the like. The control method can be provided.

It is a top view which shows the vertical take-off and landing aircraft of one Embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a plan view showing a rotor unit and a main body of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft shown in FIG. 1. FIG. 3 is a side view of the rotor unit shown in FIG. 2 as viewed from the P direction, where (a) shows a state in which the thrust direction and the reference direction coincide with each other, and (b) shows the thrust direction inclined from the reference direction to the traveling direction. (C) shows a state where the thrust direction is inclined in the reverse direction from the reference direction. FIG. 3 is a right side view of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft when the rotor unit shown in FIG. 2 is viewed from the Q direction, in which (a) shows a state in which the thrust direction coincides with the axial direction of the yaw axis; A state in which the tilt direction is inclined from the axial direction of the yaw axis to the positive direction of the roll axis, and (c) shows a state in which the thrust direction is inclined from the axial direction of the yaw axis to the negative direction of the roll axis. It is a figure which shows the inclination direction of each rotor unit in case the thrust toward a advancing direction generate | occur | produces. It is a figure which shows the inclination direction of each rotor unit in case the thrust toward 30 degrees rightward from the advancing direction generate | occur | produces. It is a control block diagram which shows the control structure of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft of one Embodiment of this invention. It is a process block diagram which shows the process which the control part shown in FIG. 7 performs. It is a flowchart which shows the process which the control part shown in FIG. 7 performs. It is a figure which shows an example of the correspondence of the present attitude angle by a correction table, and the ratio of the direction before and behind correction by a direction correction part. It is a figure which shows another example of the correspondence of the present attitude angle by a correction table, and the ratio of the direction before and behind correction by a direction correction part. It is a top view which shows the vertical take-off and landing aircraft of other embodiment.

Hereinafter, a vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 according to this embodiment includes a main body 10 and rotor units (thrust generation units) 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 viewed along a Z-axis (yaw axis) orthogonal to an XY plane defined by an X-axis (roll axis) and a Y-axis (pitch axis) on which the main body 10 is arranged. ing.

  The main body 10 is a housing in which a control unit 40, an attitude angle sensor 50, a position sensor 60, and the like, which will be described later, are housed. In addition to the above-described components, a battery (not shown) that supplies power required by the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 is housed inside the main body 10. Each part of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 is operated by electric power supplied from a battery.

The rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 are disposed at six positions that are equally spaced on the circumference C around the Z axis. The Z axis shown in FIG. 1 is an axis that passes through the center position of the main body 10. Therefore, the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 are arranged in the XY plane so as to surround the main body 10.
Each of the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 is attached to the main body 10 via attachment shafts (thrust force adjusting mechanisms) 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 extending radially from the main body 10. It has been. The extension lines of the mounting shafts 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, and 35 pass through the origin where the X axis and the Y axis intersect. The angle formed by the adjacent mounting shafts is 60 °.

Each of the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 generates a thrust Fv along the Z axis (yaw axis) that raises the main body 10.
As shown in FIG. 2, the rotor unit 20 includes a thrust generation motor 20a, a rotor deflection servomotor (thrust direction adjusting mechanism) 20b, and a rotor 20c. The rotor unit 23 includes a thrust generation motor 23a, a rotor deflection servomotor (thrust direction adjusting mechanism) 23b, and a rotor 23c.

The six arrows shown in FIG. 1 indicate the thrust Fh, which is the horizontal component of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 (the component along the XY plane of the thrust Fn). It shows the direction to get.
As will be described later, the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 have a thrust Fn by swinging around mounting shafts 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, and 35 which are single swing shafts. Change the direction. Since it swings around a single swing axis, the direction of the thrust Fh generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 is only a single direction as shown by the arrow in FIG. It becomes.

Here, FIG. 2 shows the rotor units 20, 23 among the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 shown in FIG. 1 and omits the other rotor units 21, 22, 24, and 25. FIG.
As shown in FIG. 1, the rotor units 20 and 23 form a rotor unit pair (a thrust generating unit pair) arranged symmetrically with respect to the main body 10. Similarly, the rotor units 21 and 24 are rotor unit pairs (thrust generating unit pairs) arranged symmetrically with respect to the main body 10. Similarly, the rotor units 22 and 25 are rotor unit pairs (thrust generating unit pairs) that are arranged point-symmetrically around the main body 10.
Hereinafter, the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 20 and 23 will be described in detail. The rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 21 and 24 and the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 22 and 25 are described from the rotor units 20 and 23. It is assumed that the rotor unit pair is the same, and the description is omitted.

Hereinafter, the rotor unit pair including the rotor units 20 and 23 will be described in detail.
The thrust generation motor 20a shown in FIG. 2 is housed in the rotor unit main body 20d, and rotates a drive shaft (not shown) around the axis of the rotor shaft Z1. The rotor 20c is connected to the drive shaft of the thrust generating motor 20a and generates a thrust Fv along the Z axis according to the rotation of the drive shaft.
The rotor deflection servomotor 20b is housed in the mounting shaft 30 and rotates a drive shaft (not shown) around the axis of the mounting shaft 30. A gear (not shown) is connected to the drive shaft of the servo motor 20b for rotor deflection, and is arranged so as to mesh with another gear (not shown) connected to the rotor unit main body 20d. The rotor deflection servomotor 20b rotates the drive shaft in the forward direction or the reverse direction, thereby swinging the rotor unit 20 around the mounting shaft 30 and adjusting the direction of the thrust Fn.

2 is housed in the rotor unit main body 23d, and rotates a drive shaft (not shown) around the axis of the rotor shaft Z2. The rotor 23c is connected to the drive shaft of the thrust generating motor 23a and generates a thrust Fv along the Z axis in accordance with the rotation of the drive shaft.
The rotor deflection servomotor 23 b is housed in the mounting shaft 33 and rotates a drive shaft (not shown) around the axis of the mounting shaft 33. A gear (not shown) is connected to the rotor deflection servomotor 23b, and is arranged to mesh with another gear (not shown) connected to the drive shaft of the rotor deflection servomotor 23b. The rotor deflection servomotor 23b rotates the drive shaft in the forward direction or the reverse direction, thereby swinging the rotor unit 23 about the mounting shaft 33 and adjusting the direction of the thrust Fn.

As described above, the rotor deflection servomotor 20b and the rotor unit main body 20d are connected via the gears included in each, thereby being a thrust direction adjusting mechanism that adjusts the direction of the thrust Fn generated by the rotor unit 20. Function. The thrust direction adjusting mechanism swings the direction of the thrust Fn generated by the rotor unit 20 around the mounting shaft 30 that is a single swing shaft.
Similarly, the servo motor 23b for rotor deflection and the rotor unit main body 23d are connected via a gear provided to each, thereby functioning as a thrust direction adjusting mechanism for adjusting the direction of the thrust Fn generated by the rotor unit 23. To do. The thrust direction adjusting mechanism swings the direction of the thrust Fn generated by the rotor unit 23 around the mounting shaft 33 that is a single swing shaft.

The control unit 40 described later controls the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 20 and 23 and the direction of the thrust Fn adjusted by the rotor deflection servomotors 20b and 23b.
The control unit 40 controls the thrust generation motors 20a and 23a and the rotor deflection servomotors 20b and 23b so that the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 20 and 23 is the same as the direction of the thrust Fn. .

Next, the magnitude | size of the thrust Fn controlled by the control part 40 and the direction of thrust Fn are demonstrated using FIG.3 and FIG.4.
3 is a left side view of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 when the rotor unit 20 is viewed from the P direction in FIG. 2, and FIG. 4 is a right side view of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 when the rotor unit 23 is viewed from the Q direction in FIG. is there.
When the rotor unit 20 is in the state shown in FIG. 3A, the rotor unit 23 is in the state shown in FIG. Further, when the rotor unit 20 is in the state shown in FIG. 3B, the rotor unit 23 is in the state shown in FIG. Further, when the rotor unit 20 is in the state shown in FIG. 3C, the rotor unit 23 is in the state shown in FIG.
As apparent from FIGS. 3 and 4, the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 20 and 23 is the same as the direction of the thrust Fn.

As shown in FIG. 3, the rotor 20c is coupled to the drive shaft of the thrust generating motor 20a and generates a thrust Fn in the rotor axis Z1 direction that coincides with the axial direction of the drive shaft. The magnitude of the thrust Fn is determined by the rotational speed of the rotor 20c.
As shown in FIG. 3A, in a state where the rotor axis Z1 coincides with the Z axis, the thrust Fn in the direction of the rotor axis Z1 generated by the rotor 20c coincides with the thrust Fv along the Z axis. In this case, the magnitude of the thrust Fv that raises the main body 10 generated by the rotor 20c matches the thrust Fn.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3B, in a state where the rotor axis Z1 is inclined at the inclination angle θ from the Z axis to the positive direction of the X axis, the thrust Fn in the direction of the rotor axis Z1 generated by the rotor 20c, The thrust Fv along the Z axis and the thrust Fh along the X axis have the relationships shown in the following (1) and (2).
Fv = Fn · cos θ (1)
Fh = Fn · sin θ (2)
Similarly, as shown in FIG. 3C, in a state where the rotor shaft Z1 is inclined from the Z axis in the negative direction of the X axis at an inclination angle θ, the thrust Fn in the rotor axis Z1 direction generated by the rotor 20c and The thrust Fv along the Z axis and the thrust Fh along the X axis have the relationship shown in the above (1) and (2).

As shown in FIG. 4, the rotor 23c is coupled to the drive shaft of the thrust generating motor 23a and generates a thrust Fn in the rotor axis Z2 direction that coincides with the axial direction of the drive shaft. The magnitude of the thrust Fn is determined by the rotational speed of the rotor 23c.
As shown in FIG. 4A, in a state where the rotor axis Z2 coincides with the Z axis, the thrust Fn in the direction of the rotor axis Z2 generated by the rotor 23c coincides with the thrust Fv along the Z axis. In this case, the magnitude of the thrust Fv that raises the main body 10 generated by the rotor 23c matches the thrust Fn.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4B, in a state where the rotor axis Z2 is inclined from the Z axis in the positive direction of the X axis at an inclination angle θ, the thrust Fn in the rotor axis Z2 direction generated by the rotor 23c, The thrust Fv along the Z axis and the thrust Fh along the X axis have the relationships shown in the above (1) and (2).
Similarly, as shown in FIG. 4C, in a state where the rotor axis Z2 is inclined from the Z axis in the negative direction of the X axis at an inclination angle θ, the thrust Fn in the direction of the rotor axis Z2 generated by the rotor 23c and The thrust Fv along the Z axis and the thrust Fh along the X axis have the relationship shown in the above (1) and (2).

As described above, the control unit 40 controls the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 20 and 23 and the direction of the thrust Fn to be the same regardless of the inclination angle θ.
The same applies to the rotor unit pair including the rotor units 21 and 24 and the rotor unit pair including the rotor units 22 and 25.

As shown in FIG. 1, the axial direction of the swing shaft of the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 20 and 23 coincides with the linear direction in which the mounting shaft 30 and the mounting shaft 33 extend. In FIG. 1, this linear direction is a Y-axis direction inclined 90 ° rightward with respect to the X-axis.
Further, the axis direction of the swing shaft of the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 21 and 24 coincides with the linear direction in which the mounting shaft 31 and the mounting shaft 34 extend. In FIG. 1, this linear direction is an axis A1 direction inclined to the left by 30 ° with respect to the X axis.
Further, the axial direction of the swing shaft of the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 22 and 25 coincides with the linear direction in which the mounting shaft 31 and the mounting shaft 34 extend. In FIG. 1, this linear direction is the direction of the axis A2 inclined to the right by 30 ° with respect to the X axis.

Thus, the axial direction of the swing shaft of the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 20 and 23, the axial direction of the swing shaft of the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 21 and 24, and the rotor composed of the rotor units 22 and 25 The direction of the axis of oscillation of the unit pair is different by 60 °.
By making the axis direction of the swing shaft of each rotor unit pair different, the direction of the thrust Fh generated by each rotor unit pair becomes different. Therefore, by appropriately adjusting the magnitude of the thrust Fh generated by each rotor unit pair, the resultant force of the thrust Fh generated by the plurality of rotor unit pairs can be directed in a desired direction.

Here, the thrust Fh generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 and the traveling direction of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 determined by the resultant force will be described with reference to FIGS.
5 and 6, the thrust Fh generated by the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 20 and 23 is Fh1, the thrust Fh generated by the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 21 and 24 is Fh2, and the rotor unit 22, The thrust Fh generated by the rotor unit pair consisting of 25 is Fh3.

  The inclination angle from the Z-axis (yaw axis) in the direction of the thrust generated by the rotor unit pair consisting of the rotor units 20 and 23 and the Z-axis (yaw in the direction of the thrust generated by the rotor unit pair consisting of the rotor units 21 and 24). The tilt angle from the Z axis (yaw axis) in the direction of thrust generated by the rotor unit pair composed of the rotor units 22 and 25 is independently adjusted. Therefore, the magnitude of the thrust Fh1, the magnitude of the thrust Fh2, and the magnitude of the thrust Fh3 are respectively adjusted to the same or different arbitrary magnitudes.

  FIG. 5 shows that when the thrusts Fh1, Fh2, and Fh3 have the same magnitude, the thrust along the X-axis is obtained by the resultant force Fh generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25. An example that occurs is shown. When the magnitudes of the thrusts Fh1, Fh2, and Fh3 are the same, the resultant force Fh generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 has no component in the Y-axis direction. . Therefore, the resultant force Fh generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 is a thrust along the X axis.

  FIG. 6 shows that the thrusts Fh1 and Fh2 are the same, and the thrust Fh3 is zero. An example in which thrust is generated along a direction inclined to the right is shown. When the magnitudes of the thrusts Fh1, Fh2 are the same, the resultant force of the thrust Fh generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 is a thrust along a direction inclined right by 30 ° from the X axis. It becomes.

5 and 6, the direction of the thrust Fh generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 is the direction along the X axis, or the direction inclined 30 ° to the right from the X axis. An example was given. The direction in which the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 travels in the XY plane is not limited to the examples shown in FIGS.
By adjusting the magnitudes of the thrusts Fh1, Fh2, Fh3 and the directions of the thrusts Fh1, Fh2, Fh3 shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. Can be direction.

Next, the control configuration of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 will be described using the control block diagram shown in FIG.
7 includes a storage unit such as a ROM in which a control program is stored, a storage unit such as a RAM that temporarily stores a control program stored in the storage unit, a calculation result of the control program, and the like. It is composed of a CPU (Central Processing Unit) that executes a control program.

  The control unit 40 is connected to an attitude angle sensor (such as a gyro sensor) 50 and acquires the attitude angle of the main body 10 from the attitude angle sensor 50. The attitude angle sensor 50 includes a roll angle indicating the attitude of the main body 10 around the X axis (roll axis), a pitch angle indicating the attitude of the main body 10 around the Y axis (pitch axis), and a rotation around the Z axis (yaw axis). The current posture angle including the yaw angle indicating the current posture of the main body 10 is transmitted to the control unit 40.

  The control unit 40 is connected to a position sensor (such as a GPS sensor) 60 and acquires the current position of the main body 10 from the position sensor 60. The position sensor 60 calculates the latitude and longitude of the position where the main body 10 exists, and transmits position information including the latitude and longitude to the control unit 40.

  Based on the attitude angle of the main body 10 acquired from the attitude angle sensor 50 and the current position of the main body 10 acquired from the position sensor 60, the control unit 40 generates the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25. The magnitude of the thrust Fn to be performed and the direction of the thrust Fn are determined.

When the control unit 40 determines the magnitude of the thrust Fn to be generated by each of the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, the control unit 40 sets the control signal line 70 so as to generate the determined magnitude of the thrust Fn. Then, a control signal is transmitted to the thrust generation motors 20a, 21a, 22a, 23a, 24a, and 25a.
Similarly, when the control unit 40 determines the direction of the thrust Fn to be generated by each of the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, the control signal line 70 is set so that the direction of the determined thrust Fn is obtained. Then, control signals are transmitted to the servo motors 20b, 21b, 22b, 23b, 24b, 25b for rotor deflection.

Further, the control unit 40 installs the thrust generation motors 20a and 23a and the rotor deflection servomotors 20b and 23b so that the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 20 and 23 is the same as the direction of the thrust Fn. Control.
Further, the control unit 40 controls the thrust generating motor 20a so that the rotor 20c included in the rotor unit 20 of the rotor units 20 and 23 (a pair of rotor units) rotates positively around the drive shaft, and the rotor included in the rotor unit 23. The thrust generating motor 23a is controlled so that the 23c rotates in the reverse direction around the drive shaft.

Further, the control unit 40 installs the thrust generation motors 21a and 24a and the rotor deflection servomotors 21b and 24b so that the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 21 and 24 is the same as the direction of the thrust Fn. Control.
Further, the control unit 40 controls the thrust generating motor 20a so that the rotor 21c included in the rotor unit 21 of the rotor units 21 and 24 (a pair of rotor units) rotates in the reverse direction around the drive shaft, and the rotor included in the rotor unit 24. The thrust generating motor 24a is controlled so that 24c rotates forward around the drive shaft.

Further, the control unit 40 installs the thrust generation motors 22a and 25a and the rotor deflection servomotors 22b and 25b so that the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 22 and 25 is the same as the direction of the thrust Fn. Control.
Further, the control unit 40 controls the thrust generating motor 22a so that the rotor 22c included in the rotor unit 22 of the rotor units 22 and 25 (a pair of rotor units) rotates positively around the drive shaft, and the rotor included in the rotor unit 25. The thrust generating motor 25a is controlled so that the 25c rotates in the reverse direction around the drive shaft.

  By doing in this way, the torque around the yaw axis generated by the rotor included in one of the rotor units constituting the rotor unit pair arranged symmetrically with respect to the main body 10 and the rotor included in the other rotor unit are generated. This cancels out the torque around the yaw axis. Therefore, it is possible to suppress the body from rotating around the yaw axis.

As described above, the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 include the rotor units 20, 22, and 24 (first thrust generating unit) that include the rotors 20c, 22c, and 24c that rotate forward around the drive shaft. The rotor units 21, 23, 25 (second thrust generating units) are provided with rotors 21 c, 23 c, 25 c that rotate in the reverse direction around the drive shaft.
Further, the rotor units 20, 22, 24 and the rotor units 21, 23, 25 are alternately arranged on the circumference C.

  Next, a specific control method of the magnitude of the thrust Fn and the direction of the thrust Fn executed by the control unit 40 included in the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the control unit 40 includes a target posture angle setting unit 41, a posture control unit 42, a thrust correction unit 43, a target position setting unit 44, a position control unit 45, and a direction correction unit 46. Is provided. Each part with which control part 40 is provided is mounted as a program module which control part 40 performs, for example.

  The target attitude angle setting unit 41 sets a target attitude angle indicating an attitude that the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 should hold. The target posture angle is input, for example, via an input unit (not shown) and stored in the target posture angle setting unit 41. The target posture angle is a value composed of a roll angle indicating the posture of the main body 10 around the X axis (roll axis) and a pitch angle indicating the posture of the main body 10 around the Y axis (pitch axis).

The posture control unit 42 obtains a difference between the current posture angle detected by the posture angle sensor 50 and the target posture angle set by the target posture angle setting unit 41, and based on the difference, the rotor units 20, 21, 22 are obtained. , 23, 24, and 25 determine the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated. The attitude control unit 42 determines the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 so that the attitude angle of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 approaches the target attitude angle.
The step in which the posture angle sensor 50 detects the current posture angle is step S901 in FIG. 9, and the step in which the posture control unit 42 determines the magnitude of the thrust Fn is step S902 in FIG.

  The target position setting unit 44 sets a target position indicating a position where the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 should be present. The target position is input via, for example, an input unit (not shown) and stored in the target position setting unit 44. The target position is a value composed of latitude and longitude.

The position control unit 45 acquires a difference between the current position detected by the position sensor 60 and the target position set by the target position setting unit 44, and based on the difference, the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24 , 25 generate the direction of thrust Fn. The position control unit 45 determines the direction of the thrust Fn generated by the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 so that the position of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 approaches the target position. Here, the direction of thrust Fn determining the position control section 45 and the inclination angle theta _1.
The step in which the position sensor 60 detects the current position is step S903 in FIG. 9, and the step in which the position controller 45 determines the direction of the thrust Fn is step S904 in FIG.

The direction correction unit 46 sets the direction (inclination angle θ ₁ ) of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45 according to the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle on the XY plane on which the main body 10 is arranged. The direction of the thrust Fn is corrected so as to approach the orthogonal yaw axis direction (reference direction), and the corrected direction of the thrust Fn is output. Here, the direction of the corrected thrust Fn by the direction correcting section 46 and the inclination angle theta _2.
The step in which the direction correction unit 46 corrects the direction of the thrust Fn is step S905 in FIG.

The direction correction unit 46 corrects the direction (inclination angle θ ₁ ) of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45 using any one of the correction tables 1 to 6 shown in FIGS. 10 and 11, and the corrected thrust Fn Direction (inclination angle θ ₂ ) is output.
Even when any one of the correction tables 1 to 6 is used, if the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or greater than the angle A (first angle), θ ₂ / θ ₁ becomes zero. as described above, to correct the inclination angle theta _1. That is, in this case, the direction of the corrected thrust Fn is the yaw axis direction (reference direction) regardless of the direction of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45 (inclination angle θ ₁ ). And
This is because the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is large, so that the posture control is prioritized by making the direction of the thrust Fn coincide with the yaw axis direction.
Note that, as the angle A described above, an arbitrary value larger than 0 ° and not larger than 90 ° can be set.

When the correction tables 1 to 3 are used, the direction correction unit 46 gradually increases θ ₂ / θ ₁ from 1.0 to zero as the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle approaches the angle A from zero. The direction (tilt angle θ ₁ ) of the thrust Fn determined by the position controller 45 is corrected so as to decrease. When the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is zero, θ ₂ / θ ₁ is 1.0. Therefore, the direction (inclination angle θ ₁ ) of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45 is output from the direction correction unit 46 as it is. This is because the current posture angle coincides with the target posture angle, so that correction by the direction correction unit 46 is unnecessary.

On the other hand, when the correction tables 4 to 6 are used, the direction correction unit 46 is determined by the position control unit 45 when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is greater than zero and equal to or less than the angle B (second angle). The direction (tilt angle θ ₁ ) of the thrust force Fn is output without correction. Here, the angle B is an angle larger than zero and smaller than the angle A.
In this way, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or smaller than the angle B, the position control based on the direction of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45 can be prioritized.

The direction correction unit 46 transmits the corrected direction of the thrust Fn (inclination angle θ ₂ ) to the servo motors 20b, 21b, 22b, 23b, 24b, and 25b for rotor deflection. The rotor deflection servomotors 20b, 21b, 22b, 23b, 24b, and 25b operate so as to be in the direction of the transmitted thrust Fn (inclination angle θ ₂ ).

The thrust correction unit 43 is configured so that the attitude control unit 42 responds as the difference between the direction (tilt angle θ ₂ ) of the corrected thrust Fn output from the direction correction unit 46 and the yaw axis direction (reference direction) increases. The magnitude of the thrust Fn is corrected so as to increase the magnitude of the determined thrust Fn.
The step in which the thrust correcting unit 43 corrects the magnitude of the thrust Fn is step S906 in FIG.

  The thrust correcting unit 43 transmits the corrected magnitude of the thrust Fn to the thrust generating motors 20a, 21a, 22a, 23a, 24a, 25a. The thrust generation motors 20a, 21a, 22a, 23a, 24a, and 25a operate so as to have the magnitude of the transmitted thrust Fn.

  The operation and effects of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 of the present embodiment described above will be described.

  According to the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 of the present embodiment, the magnitude of the thrust Fn generated by each of the plurality of rotor units based on the current posture angle and the target posture angle detected by the posture angle sensor (posture angle detection unit) 50. Is determined by the attitude control unit 42. Further, the direction of the thrust Fn of each of the plurality of rotor units adjusted by the rotor deflection servomotor (thrust direction adjusting mechanism) based on the current position and target position detected by the position sensor (position detection unit) 60 is the position control unit. 45.

  The direction of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45 is brought closer to the yaw axis direction (reference direction) orthogonal to the XY plane on which the main body 10 is arranged in accordance with the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle. It is corrected as follows. Therefore, when the main body 10 is largely inclined from the target attitude angle due to the influence of a crosswind or the like, the attitude of the aircraft is adjusted in accordance with the increase in the inclination of the thrust Fn direction from the yaw axis direction (reference direction). It is suppressed that the magnitude of the thrust Fv acting on is reduced. This also gives priority to the posture control 42 based on the magnitude of the thrust Fn determined by the posture control unit 42 over the position control based on the direction of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45.

In addition, the magnitude of the thrust Fn determined by the attitude control unit 42 increases as the difference between the direction of the corrected thrust Fn (tilt angle θ ₂ ) and the yaw axis direction (reference direction) increases. It is corrected to. For this reason, the magnitude of the thrust Fv that raises the main body during sliding is reduced.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, even when the main body 10 is largely inclined from the target posture angle due to the influence of a cross wind or the like, the current posture of the main body 10 can be quickly stabilized at the target posture angle. It is possible to provide a vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 capable of

In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 of the present embodiment, the direction correction unit 46 performs position control when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is greater than 0 ° and greater than or equal to the angle A (first angle) of 90 ° or less. The direction of the thrust Fn is corrected so that the direction of the thrust Fn determined by the unit 45 is the yaw axis direction (reference direction).
Thus, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or greater than the angle A, the direction of the thrust Fn is the yaw axis direction regardless of the direction of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45. Thus, priority can be given to posture control based on the magnitude of the thrust Fn determined by the posture control unit 42.

In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 of the present embodiment, the direction correction unit 46 performs position control when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or smaller than an angle B (second angle) that is greater than 0 ° and smaller than the angle A. The direction of the thrust Fn determined by the unit 45 is output without correction.
In this way, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is equal to or smaller than the angle B, the position control based on the direction of the thrust Fn determined by the position control unit 45 can be prioritized.

In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 of the present embodiment, each of the plurality of rotor units is connected to the thrust generation motor that rotates the drive shaft around the axis, and the axis along the axis according to the rotation of the drive shaft. And a rotor that generates a thrust in a direction.
In this way, each of the plurality of rotor units can be configured to generate thrust by the rotor by rotating the drive shaft by the thrust generating motor.

In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 according to one aspect of the present invention, each of the plurality of rotor units is attached to the main body 10 via a plurality of attachment shafts extending from the main body 10. The direction of the thrust Fn is adjusted by swinging the rotor unit.
By doing so, the direction of the thrust Fn generated by each rotor unit can be inclined from the yaw axis direction (reference direction) by swinging each rotor unit around the mounting shaft extending from the main body 10.

[Other Embodiments]
In the vertical take-off and landing aircraft 100 of the present embodiment described above, the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 are mounted around the mounting shafts 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, and 35 that are single swinging shafts. The direction of the thrust Fn is changed by swinging in the direction, but other modes may be used.
For example, the rotor units 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, and 25 may change the direction of the thrust Fn to an arbitrary position by swinging around a plurality of swing axes.

FIG. 12 is a plan view showing a vertical take-off and landing aircraft 200 according to another embodiment.
In FIG. 12, the configuration denoted by the same reference numerals as those in FIG. 1 is the same as the configuration described in FIG. 1.
The twelve arrows shown in FIG. 1 indicate the horizontal component of the thrust Fn generated by each of the rotor units 20 ′, 21 ′, 22 ′, 23 ′, 24 ′, and 25 ′ (the component along the XY plane of the thrust Fn). ) Is a possible direction of the thrust Fh.

As shown in FIG. 12, in the rotor units 20 ′ and 23 ′, the thrust Fh can take the direction not only in the direction along the Y axis but also in the direction perpendicular to the Y axis. Therefore, the rotor units 20 ′ and 23 ′ can direct the direction of the thrust Fn in an arbitrary direction combined with two-axis swinging.
Similarly, in the rotor units 21 ′ and 24 ′, the thrust Fh can take the direction not only in the direction along the axis A1, but also in the direction orthogonal to the axis A1. Therefore, the rotor units 21 ′ and 24 ′ can direct the direction of the thrust Fn in an arbitrary direction combined with two-axis swinging.
Similarly, in the rotor units 22 ′ and 25 ′, the thrust Fh can take not only the direction along the axis A1 but also the direction orthogonal to the axis A1. Therefore, the rotor units 22 ′ and 25 ′ can direct the direction of the thrust Fn in an arbitrary direction combined with two-axis swinging.

10 Main body 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25 Rotor unit (thrust generator)
20a, 21a, 22a, 23a, 24a, 25a Thrust generating motors 20b, 21b, 22b, 23b, 24b, 25b Rotor deflection servomotors (thrust direction adjusting mechanism)
20c, 23c Rotor 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35 Mounting shaft (thrust direction adjusting mechanism)
40 control unit 41 target posture angle setting unit 42 posture control unit 43 thrust correction unit 44 target position setting unit 45 position control unit 46 direction correction unit 50 posture angle sensor (posture angle detection unit)
60 Position sensor (position detector)
70 Control signal lines 100, 200 Vertical take-off and landing aircraft C Circumference X Roll axis Y Pitch axis Z Yaw axis Z1, Z2 Rotor axis θ, θ ₁ , θ ₂ Inclination angle

Claims (8)

The body,
A plurality of thrust generators disposed at a plurality of positions on the circumference surrounding the main body and generating a thrust for raising the main body;
A thrust direction adjusting mechanism that adjusts the direction of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generating units;
A posture angle detector that detects a current posture angle of the main body;
A position detector for detecting a current position of the main body;
A control unit for controlling the magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units and the direction of the thrust of each of the plurality of thrust generation units adjusted by the thrust direction adjustment mechanism;
The controller is
A posture control unit that determines the magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units based on the current posture angle and the target posture angle detected by the posture angle detection unit;
A position control unit that determines the direction of the thrust of each of the plurality of thrust generation units adjusted by the thrust direction adjustment mechanism based on the current position and the target position detected by the position detection unit;
As the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle increases, the direction of the thrust determined by the position control unit approaches the reference direction orthogonal to the plane on which the main body is arranged. A direction correction unit for correcting the direction;
The magnitude of the thrust is corrected so that the magnitude of the thrust determined by the attitude control unit increases as the difference between the direction of the thrust corrected by the direction correction unit and the reference direction increases. A vertical take-off and landing aircraft having a thrust correction unit.   When the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is not less than a first angle greater than 0 ° and not more than 90 °, the direction correction unit determines that the direction of the thrust determined by the position control unit is the reference The vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 1, wherein the direction of the thrust is corrected so as to be in the direction.   The direction correction unit determines the direction of the thrust determined by the position control unit when a difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is greater than 0 ° and smaller than or equal to a second angle smaller than the first angle. The vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 2, which outputs without correction.   Each of the plurality of thrust generation units includes a motor that rotates a drive shaft around an axis, and a rotor that is coupled to the drive shaft and generates a thrust in a direction along the axis according to the rotation of the drive shaft. The vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising: Each of the plurality of thrust generating portions is attached to the main body via a plurality of attachment shafts extending from the main body,
The vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the thrust direction adjusting mechanism adjusts a direction of the thrust by swinging the thrust generating portion around the mounting shaft. A main body, a plurality of thrust generators disposed at a plurality of positions on the circumference surrounding the main body and generating a thrust for raising the main body, and the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generators A vertical take-off and landing aircraft control method comprising a thrust direction adjusting mechanism for adjusting a direction,
A posture angle detection step of detecting a current posture angle of the main body;
A posture control step of determining a magnitude of the thrust generated by each of the plurality of thrust generation units based on the current posture angle and the target posture angle detected by the posture angle detection unit;
A position detecting step for detecting a current position of the main body;
A position control step of determining a direction of the thrust of each of the plurality of thrust generating units adjusted by the thrust direction adjusting mechanism based on the current position and the target position detected by the position detecting step;
As the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle increases, the direction of the thrust determined by the position control step approaches the reference direction orthogonal to the plane on which the main body is arranged. A direction correction step for correcting the direction;
The magnitude of the thrust is corrected so that the magnitude of the thrust determined by the posture control process increases as the difference between the direction of the thrust corrected by the direction correction process and the reference direction increases. And a thrust correcting step for controlling the vertical take-off and landing aircraft.   In the direction correction step, when the difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is not less than a first angle greater than 0 ° and not more than 90 °, the direction of the thrust determined by the position control step is the reference The method of controlling a vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 6, wherein the direction of the thrust is corrected so as to be in the direction.   In the direction correction step, the direction of the thrust determined by the position control step is determined when a difference between the current posture angle and the target posture angle is greater than 0 ° and smaller than or equal to a second angle smaller than the first angle. The method of controlling a vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 7, wherein correction is not performed.

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