KR102150900B1 - Unmanned aerial vehicle having safety functions using sensing microcurrent of propeller - Google Patents

Abstract

Embodiments include a propeller having a rotatable blade and a control unit for controlling the operation of the blade, wherein the blade includes a conductive channel through which a predetermined current flows, and the control unit is configured to change the microcurrent size of the conductive channel. , It relates to an unmanned aerial vehicle having a safety function using the microcurrent sensing of a propeller, which controls the operation of the blade based on the changed microcurrent magnitude value.

Description

Unmanned aerial vehicle having safety functions using sensing microcurrent of propeller}

The present invention relates to an unmanned aerial vehicle, and more specifically, to an unmanned aerial vehicle having a safety function using microcurrent sensing of a propeller.

[Task Information]

Assignment identification number: S2626604

Department Name: Small and Medium Venture Business Department

Research management institution: Small and Medium Venture Business Department

Research Project Name: Startup Growth Technology Development Project

Research Project Title: Development of a vertical take-off and landing hybrid drone with variable wings

Organizer: Ultimate Midrone Co., Ltd.

Research Period: June 29, 2018 ~ June 28, 2019

Conventional unmanned aerial vehicles frequently rush to a person on the ground for reasons such as a pilot's inexperience in driving, causing an accident. The rotating blades of the unmanned aerial vehicle (included in the propeller) rotate sharply and quickly, so they can easily penetrate human skin and cause great injury.

Korean Patent Registration 10-1748030

In order to overcome the above problems, a safety function that automatically stops the rotation of the propeller of the unmanned aerial vehicle is required in a situation where the unmanned aerial vehicle is close to humans and is expected to cause damage to humans.

The technical problem of the present invention is not limited to those mentioned above, and another technical problem that is not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description.

An unmanned aerial vehicle having a safety function using microcurrent sensing of a propeller according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a propeller having a rotatable blade and a control unit for controlling the operation of the blade, wherein the blade is conductive. A channel is included, and the controller controls an operation of the blade based on the changed microcurrent size value when the microcurrent size of the conductive channel changes.

In one embodiment, the controller may stop the rotation of the blade when the magnitude of the microcurrent of the conductive channel changes to a threshold value or more.

In one embodiment, the conductive channel is formed in the blade in the form of at least one of a longitudinal line of the blade, a transverse line of the blade, an oblique line, a right angle cross pattern, and a non-right angle cross pattern. I can.

In one embodiment, the conductive channel may be formed by being exposed at least partially to the outside of the blade, the whole being embedded in the blade, or the whole being exposed to the outside of the blade.

In an embodiment, the control unit may adjust a magnitude of the current flowing through the conductive channel or adjust the threshold value based on the rotation speed of the blade.

In one embodiment, the controller may control the rotation of the blade so that the propeller rotates reversely by a predetermined rotation angle in a direction opposite to the current rotation direction when the magnitude of the microcurrent of the conductive channel changes to a threshold value or more. .

In one embodiment, the predetermined rotation angle may be equal to or smaller than an angle between blades included in a propeller.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the unmanned aerial vehicle is located near a person, there is an advantage of automatically preventing an accident caused by the unmanned aerial vehicle by detecting a change in minute current flowing through the conductive channel of the blade of the unmanned aerial vehicle.

In addition, according to an embodiment of the present invention, by placing a very light and low power conductive channel on the blade, it is possible to secure safety while minimizing the weight increase of the unmanned aerial vehicle. In addition, by forming a conductive channel in the rotating blade, there is an advantage of covering a large area with a conductive channel having a small length.

The effects of the present invention are not limited to the effects mentioned above, and other effects that are not mentioned will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description of the claims.

1 is a plan view of an unmanned aerial vehicle 100 having a safety function using microcurrent sensing of a propeller according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 shows one of the propellers 130 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
3A to 3E show examples of implementation of a conductive channel 140 according to various embodiments of the present disclosure.
4 shows various types of conductive channels 1401 to 1403 formed on the blade 131 of the propeller 130 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 shows a relationship between a blade rotation speed R, a current magnitude I flowing through a conductive channel 140, and a change threshold TH of a microcurrent Im according to an embodiment of the present invention.
6 shows a propeller 130 configured with three blades 131 in an embodiment of the present invention.
7 shows examples (100a-100c) of various types of hybrid unmanned aerial vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The terms used in this specification are used only to describe specific embodiments, and are not intended to limit the present invention. Singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In the present specification, terms such as "comprise" or "have" are intended to designate the presence of a set feature, number, step, action, component, part, or combination thereof, and one or more other features or numbers It is to be understood that the presence or addition of, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof does not preclude in advance.

The embodiments described herein may have an aspect that is entirely hardware, partially hardware and partially software, or entirely software. In the present specification, “unit”, “module”, “device” or “system” refers to a computer-related entity such as hardware, a combination of hardware and software, or software. For example, in the present specification, the unit, module, device, or system is a running process, processor, object, executable file, thread of execution, program, and/or computer. It may be (computer), but is not limited thereto. For example, both an application running on a computer and a computer may correspond to a unit, module, device, or system of the present specification.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

1 is a plan view of an unmanned aerial vehicle 100 having a safety function using microcurrent sensing of a propeller according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may include a propeller 130 having a rotatable blade 131 and a control unit 120 controlling the operation of the blade 131. Here, the control unit 120 may be cased in the main body 110. That is, the blade 131 refers to a rotating blade, and the propeller 130 refers to a component including a rotating shaft of the blade 131.

In addition, a driving unit (eg, a motor or power transmission devices connected to the motor) for rotating the blade may be further included in the main body 110. In addition, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may further include a user identification device, a communication device, a light emitting device, an image capturing device, a battery, an engine, and the like.

In FIG. 1, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is shown to be a quadcopter having four propellers, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and N propellers may be provided, and the positions of each propeller are symmetrical or non-symmetrical. You can also achieve.

In addition, although it is shown that there are two blades 131 of the propeller 130 in FIG. 1, the present invention is not limited thereto, and one or three or more blades may be configured in one propeller 130.

The propeller 130 can raise or lower the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 by generating lift. In addition, the propeller 130 may enable the direction change to the roll, pitch, and yaw directions of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100.

In various embodiments, the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 is a multicopter such as a hexacopter, a helicopter, a tiltrotor, a hybrid vehicle, a biomimetic vehicle, etc. It may be in the form of at least one of the unmanned aerial vehicles using.

In addition, the "unmanned" of the unmanned aerial vehicle may include a case where a person does not board or does not directly control a person. Therefore, the unmanned aerial vehicle may include a case where a person is boarded.

2 shows one of the propellers 130 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 2, the blade 131 of the propeller 130 may include a conductive channel 140 through which a predetermined current I flows. The conductive channel 140 means at least one line made of a conductive material through which current can flow.

In the embodiments of the present invention, the conductive channel 140 may be included in the blade 131 by various manufacturing methods. For example, if the blade 131 is composed of a carbon fiber spar, glass/carbon fiber reinforced skin, polyurethane foam, etc., the conductive channel 140 is impregnated at a predetermined step during lamination to prevent the blade's inner skin. Or it can be configured at a specific point on the skin. Meanwhile, in the case of the blade 131 made of resin, the conductive channel 140 may be included in the blade 131 by being pre-treated inside the mold.

The controller 120 may control a predetermined amount of current flowing through the conductive channel 140 and detect a change in the amount of current flowing through the conductive channel 140 (including a change in minute size). When the size of the microcurrent Im of the conductive channel 140 is changed, the operation of the blade 131 can be controlled based on the changed microcurrent Im size.

Specifically, a magnetic field of 140M may be generated as a current flows through the conductive channel 140, and when a conductive object (e.g., a part of the body, skin, etc.) approaches the magnetic field area 140M, the microcurrent Im flowing through the conductive channel 140 changes. . The controller 120 may sense such a microcurrent and determine whether a conductive object exists around the blade 131.

The range of the magnetic field region 140M may be changed according to the magnitude of the current I flowing through the conductive channel 140.

Although FIG. 2 shows any one propeller, at least one propeller 130 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 may have a conductive channel 140 as in FIG. 2 on the blade 131 of the propeller 130 as in FIG. 2.

Since the blade 131 rotates around the axis 130x, when a plurality of blades 131 are provided on one axis 130x, even when a conductive channel 140 is provided only in at least one blade 131, microcurrent sensing through the magnetic field area 140M may be possible. .

On the other hand, when the conductive channels exist in the adjacent blades, mutual interference may occur, so that the conductive channels may be provided only on one blade among the blades included in one propeller so that such interference does not occur. However, the present invention is not limited thereto. It is a technical idea to be included in an embodiment of the present invention that a conductive channel must be configured in consideration of this point, since an element that interferes with microcurrent sensing may be generated due to interference between conductive channels only.

In an embodiment, the controller 120 may stop the rotation of the blade when the magnitude of the microcurrent of the conductive channel 140 changes to more than a threshold value (that is, when a conductive object is located in the magnetic field region 140M). As the conductive object approaches the conductive channel 140, the change in the magnitude of the current (or microcurrent) will be greater.

3A to 3E show examples of implementation of a conductive channel 140 according to various embodiments of the present disclosure. For reference, in (a) to (e) of FIG. 3, the x-axis represents the horizontal direction of the blade, and the y-axis represents the longitudinal direction of the blade. In embodiments, the conductive channel 140 is a longitudinal line of the blade 130 (Fig. 3 (a)), a transverse line of the blade (Fig. 3 (b)), and an oblique line (Fig. 3 (c)). ), a right-angled cross pattern (FIG. 3(d)), and a non-right-angled cross pattern (FIG. 3(e)) may be formed on the blade 131 in the form of at least one.

Referring to FIG. 3D, the conductive channel 140X and the conductive channel 140Y cross each other at right angles, and in FIG. 3E, the conductive channels 140k cross each other at an angle other than a right angle.

In addition, in another embodiment, the conductive channel 140 may be formed in the blade 131 in a form in which at least two or more of the forms shown in FIG. 3 are mixed.

Since the blade 131 rotates at a very high speed, the shape of the magnetic field region 140M formed around the blade 131 according to the pattern of the conductive channel 140 formed on the blade 131 may be various.

In addition, a spacing between non-intersecting conductive channels 140 among the conductive channels 140 shown in FIGS. 3A to 3E may be uniform or at least partially non-uniform. This interval may be adjusted by the manufacturer or by the user in consideration of the shape and range of the magnetic field region 140M.

4 shows various types of conductive channels 1401 to 1403 formed on the blade 131 of the propeller 130 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The conductive channels 1401-1403 shown in FIG. 4 may be formed on one blade 131, and each shape 1401-1403 may be formed on the blade 131 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 according to different embodiments.

Referring to FIG. 4, the conductive channel may be at least partially exposed to the outside of the blade 131, 1401, the entire conductive channel may be embedded in the blade 131, 1402, and the entire conductive channel may be exposed to the outside of the blade 1403. . When a part or all of the conductive channel is embedded in the blade 131 (a portion indicated by a dotted line in FIG. 4), a dielectric layer or various other protective material layers may be formed over the conductive channel.

5 shows the relationship between the blade rotation speed R, the magnitude of the current I flowing through the conductive channel 140, and the change threshold TH of the microcurrent Im according to an embodiment of the present invention. In the present specification, the current I refers to the amount of current flowing through the conductive channel 140, and the microcurrent Im refers to a minute amount of change in the current I flowing through the conductive channel 140 due to an external influence.

In an embodiment, the controller 120 may adjust the magnitude I of the current flowing through the conductive channel 140 based on the rotational speed R of the blade 131 or a threshold TH for determining whether to rotate the blade. Referring to FIG. 5, in an exemplary embodiment, the controller 120 increases the current I or adjusts 501 or the threshold TH 502 as the rotational speed R of the blade increases. However, this is only an example, and in FIG. 5, line 501 may be positioned below 502, or at least one of 501 and 502 may have a negative inclination shape, and may have a positive inclination or a negative inclination depending on the magnitude of the rotational speed R. It can also have a slope.

As the size of the threshold value TH is set smaller, the safety function of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention reacts sensitively to the conductive object around the blade, and the larger the size of the threshold value is set, the more insensitive it may react.

In an embodiment, the controller 120 may stop the rotation of the blade when the magnitude of the microcurrent of the conductive channel 140 changes to more than the threshold value TH. For example, the controller 120 may stop the rotation of the blade 131 by cutting off the power transmitted to the propeller 130. However, even if the power supply is cut off, the rotation of the blade may not stop immediately due to inertia.

6 shows a propeller 130 configured with three blades 131 in an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 6, the blade 131 configured in the propeller 130 has an angle θ1, and operates so that the unmanned aerial vehicle 100 rises while rotating in the FF direction.

Referring to FIG. 6, in an example, when the microcurrent magnitude I of the conductive channel 140 changes to a threshold value TH or more, the propeller reverses by a predetermined rotation angle θ _{RR in a} direction RR opposite to the current rotation direction FF. You can control the rotation of the blade 131 to rotate.

On the other hand, if the reverse rotation angle of the blade 131 is excessive, it may hit the conductive object in reverse, so the reverse rotation angle θ _RR may be less than or equal to the interposition angle θ1 of the blade 131.

7 shows examples (100a-100c) of various types of hybrid unmanned aerial vehicles according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 7, the technical idea of the present invention may be applied to a hybrid unmanned aerial vehicle of various types in addition to the quadcopter type illustrated in FIG. 2. In particular, in the unmanned aerial vehicle 100c, the propeller is located in the traveling direction of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100c. In this case, the shape or position of the conductive channel may be different from the conductive channel of the unmanned aerial vehicle of the shape of FIG. 2. For example, the conductive channel provided on the blade of the propeller of the unmanned aerial vehicle 100c may have a shape surrounding the outer surface of the blade so that the direction of the magnetic field caused by the current flowing through the conductive channel can be concentrated in the traveling direction of the unmanned aerial vehicle. However, this form is not limited to the embodiments of the present invention.

The present invention described above has been described with reference to the embodiments shown in the drawings, but these are merely exemplary, and those of ordinary skill in the art will understand that various modifications and variations of the embodiments are possible therefrom. However, such modifications should be considered to be within the technical protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the true technical scope of the present invention should be determined by the technical spirit of the appended claims.

Claims (7)

Propellers with rotatable blades; And
Including a control unit for controlling the operation of the blade,
The blade includes a conductive channel through which a predetermined current flows,
When the magnitude of the microcurrent of the conductive channel changes, the control unit controls the operation of the blade based on the changed microcurrent magnitude value,
When the magnitude of the microcurrent of the conductive channel changes above a threshold value, the control unit stops rotation of the blade,
The control unit is an unmanned aerial vehicle having a safety function using microcurrent sensing of a propeller to adjust the magnitude of the current flowing through the conductive channel or the threshold value based on the rotation speed of the blade.
delete The method of claim 1,
The conductive channel,
A safety function using microcurrent sensing of a propeller, formed in the blade in at least one of a longitudinal line of the blade, a transverse line of the blade, an oblique line, a right angle cross pattern, and a non-right angle cross pattern. Having an unmanned aerial vehicle.
The method of claim 1,
The conductive channel,
At least partially exposed to the outside of the blade, or
The whole is built into the inside of the blade, or
An unmanned aerial vehicle having a safety function using microcurrent sensing of a propeller, which is formed by being exposed to the outside of the blade.
delete The method of claim 1,
The control unit, when the magnitude of the microcurrent of the conductive channel changes above a threshold value, safety using microcurrent sensing of a propeller that controls the rotation of the blade so that the propeller rotates reversely by a predetermined rotation angle in a direction opposite to the current rotation direction. Unmanned aerial vehicle with functions.
The method of claim 6,
The predetermined rotation angle is smaller than the angle between the blades included in the propeller, the unmanned aerial vehicle having a safety function using the micro-current sensing of the propeller.

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