Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64U—UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES [UAV]; EQUIPMENT THEREFOR
  • B64U10/00—Type of UAV
  • B64U10/20—Vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64C—AEROPLANES; HELICOPTERS
  • B64C29/00—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft
  • B64C29/0008—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded
  • B64C29/0016—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded the lift during taking-off being created by free or ducted propellers or by blowers
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64C—AEROPLANES; HELICOPTERS
  • B64C29/00—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft
  • B64C29/0008—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded
  • B64C29/0016—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded the lift during taking-off being created by free or ducted propellers or by blowers
  • B64C29/0025—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded the lift during taking-off being created by free or ducted propellers or by blowers the propellers being fixed relative to the fuselage
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64C—AEROPLANES; HELICOPTERS
  • B64C29/00—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft
  • B64C29/0008—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded
  • B64C29/0016—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded the lift during taking-off being created by free or ducted propellers or by blowers
  • B64C29/0033—Aircraft capable of landing or taking-off vertically, e.g. vertical take-off and landing [VTOL] aircraft having its flight directional axis horizontal when grounded the lift during taking-off being created by free or ducted propellers or by blowers the propellers being tiltable relative to the fuselage
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64U—UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES [UAV]; EQUIPMENT THEREFOR
  • B64U10/00—Type of UAV
  • B64U10/25—Fixed-wing aircraft
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64U—UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES [UAV]; EQUIPMENT THEREFOR
  • B64U30/00—Means for producing lift; Empennages; Arrangements thereof
  • B64U30/10—Wings
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64U—UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES [UAV]; EQUIPMENT THEREFOR
  • B64U30/00—Means for producing lift; Empennages; Arrangements thereof
  • B64U30/20—Rotors; Rotor supports
  • B64U30/29—Constructional aspects of rotors or rotor supports; Arrangements thereof
  • B64U30/296—Rotors with variable spatial positions relative to the UAV body
  • B64U30/297—Tilting rotors
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B64—AIRCRAFT; AVIATION; COSMONAUTICS
  • B64U—UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLES [UAV]; EQUIPMENT THEREFOR
  • B64U50/00—Propulsion; Power supply
  • B64U50/10—Propulsion
  • B64U50/13—Propulsion using external fans or propellers

Definitions

• the invention relates to an aircraft that takes off vertically and has two wings arranged on a fuselage of the aircraft, with at least one swivel drive unit being pivotably arranged on the wings along each wing and being able to be brought into a vertical flight position and into a horizontal flight position, the
• pivoting drive units In the vertical flight position, pivoting drive units generate a lift necessary for a vertical flight movement of the aircraft and in the horizontal flight position generate a propulsion necessary for a horizontal flight movement of the aircraft.
• Aircraft are used, among other things, as drones and in the military sector. These aircraft usually have two wings arranged on opposite sides of an aircraft fuselage, with two drive units being pivotably mounted on the wings in support elements, such as gondolas, adapted to the respective application and rigidly connected to the wings. Aircraft are also known in which there is no separate aircraft fuselage and the wing is formed from two wing halves configured symmetrically along the longitudinal axis, with two drive units being pivotably mounted on the wing halves in support elements adapted to the respective application and rigidly connected to the wing halves are.
• the yaw and roll angles are controlled in order to achieve the desired yaw and roll of the multicopter by suitably controlling the drive units that cannot be pivoted in multicopters.
• the power provided by the respective drive units is specified individually for each drive in order to generate the yawing and rolling via the lift differences and torque differences generated in this way.
• the orientation of the aircraft in three-dimensional space is usually described by the roll, pitch and yaw angles.
• the different angles describe angles of rotation of the aircraft, starting from a zero position, which can correspond, for example, to the orientation of the aircraft standing on the ground, about a longitudinal, transverse and vertical axis of the aircraft.
• a roll axis of an aircraft is usually to be equated with the longitudinal axis of the aircraft, with the aircraft rolling or tilting by a roll angle about this roll axis.
• a pitch axis of the aircraft is a transverse axis oriented perpendicularly to the roll axis, with the aircraft pitching or pitching by a pitch angle about this pitch axis.
• a yaw axis of the aircraft is a vertical axis oriented perpendicularly to the roll axis and to the yaw axis, with the aircraft yawing or rolling about a yaw angle about this yaw axis.
• aircraft that take off vertically are known from the prior art, in which the drive units are mounted pivotably directly on the wings, for example on a support structure running inside the wing. Included the drive units are each brought into a vertical flight position and into a horizontal flight position with a separate rotary drive.
• Such a vertical take-off aircraft is described in publication WO 2014/016226 A1.
• this vertical take-off aircraft it is provided that in the horizontal flight position the first drive unit is arranged above a wing surface and the second drive unit is arranged below the wing surface on the wing, and that in the vertical flight position the first drive unit and the second drive unit are arranged in an approximately horizontal plane .
• connection area between the wings and the fuselage of the aircraft must be designed to be particularly stable and load-bearing due to the heavy weight of the drive units or pivot drives arranged on the wings, which increases the overall weight of the aircraft.
• a high drive power of the drive units is required during a vertical take-off of the aircraft. Due to the high total weight of the aircraft, the remaining flight time or the remaining flight distance available is limited by the available and battery capacity.
• this object is achieved in that at least one vertical drive unit is arranged rigidly in a vertical flight position on each wing.
• the swivel drive units are swiveled in one direction or opposite to the direction of the level flight movement, so that the swivel drive units generate the drive necessary for the level flight movement.
• the vertical drive units which are rigidly arranged on the wings and oriented in a vertical flight position, generate the lift necessary for the vertical flight movement only during the vertical flight phase.
• these are flown against laterally, whereby a greater flow resistance is generated in comparison to the pivoting drive units pivoted in or against the horizontal flight direction.
• the vertical drive unit can be designed to be particularly light-weight.
• the weight force acting on a wing is thus also particularly low, so that the wing as a whole and in particular in the connection area between the wings and the fuselage can be configured particularly easily.
• a particularly weight-reduced aircraft can thus be produced, as a result of which a low drive power is required during the vertical flight phase when the aircraft takes off vertically.
• an advantageous implementation of the concept of the invention provides that in a vertical flight position at least one swivel drive unit and at least one
• Vertical drive unit are aligned in such a way that an angle of attack is enclosed between a direction of the lift force generated in each case by the swivel drive unit and by the vertical drive unit and an axis which is perpendicular to a plane spanned by a roll axis of the aircraft and by a pitch axis of the aircraft.
• the rigidly arranged vertical drive units can advantageously and according to the invention be aligned in such a way that the buoyancy forces generated by opposing vertical drive units cancel each other out as long as the respective drive powers are the same. Yawing or rolling is brought about either by adapting the respective drive power and/or by pivoting at least one pivot drive unit.
• the angle of attack of the slewing drive unit and the According to the invention, the vertical drive unit can be selected such that a horizontal force component of the lift force is directed in the direction of the aircraft or in an opposite direction of the aircraft, in the direction of flight or against the direction of flight.
• an advantageous implementation of the idea of the invention provides that a first distance between the at least one pivot drive unit and a longitudinal axis of the aircraft is smaller than a second distance between the at least one vertical drive unit and the longitudinal axis of the aircraft.
• the swivel drive units are expediently arranged as close as possible to the longitudinal axis of the aircraft or to the aircraft fuselage.
• a smallest possible distance is, for example, through a rotor diameter of a rotor of the swivel drive unit.
• the arrangement of the rotary drive units in the vicinity of the aircraft fuselage makes the wing construction stiffer overall, so that fewer bending vibrations occur in the wings. As a result, maneuverability in the vertical flight attitude is improved in particular and smoother flight behavior is achieved.
• a slight change in a yaw moment directed about the yaw axis of the aircraft is generated in the horizontal flight position of the swivel drive unit when there is a change in drive power of a swivel drive unit.
• a change in the yaw moment can be compensated for by specifying the drive power of a pivoting drive unit arranged on the opposite wing.
• the swivel drive units and the vertical drive units are designed according to the invention in such a way that if a swivel drive unit or a vertical drive unit fails, the lift required for the vertical flight movement or the propulsion required for the horizontal flight movement are compensated by the available drive power of the functional swivel drive units and vertical drive units.
• an advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that two swivel drive units and two vertical drive units are arranged on the wing, with the two swivel drive units and the two vertical drive units each being in a horizontal flight direction of the Aircraft arranged one behind the other and are arranged approximately at an equal distance from a longitudinal axis of the aircraft. Because the two swivel drive units and two vertical drive units are each in the horizontal flight direction are arranged one behind the other, the control of the swivel drive units and the vertical drive units can be carried out particularly easily, analogously to the control of a multicopter.
• the swivel drive units and the vertical drive units each have a support arm with which the
• Pan drive units and the vertical drive units are fixed to the wing. Thus, a distance between the pivot drive units and the
• Vertical drive units can be selected independently of the wing width and length.
• the distances between the swivel drive units and the vertical drive units can be selected to be as large as possible, so that the lift forces generated by the swivel drive units and the vertical drive units by changing the lift forces can be used in a particularly large proportion to control a yaw or roll movement and for a rotation of the aircraft by one Yaw, roll or pitch axis contribute. This enables a particularly stable flight behavior during the vertical flight phase.
• two swivel drive units arranged one behind the other in the horizontal flight direction are arranged in a horizontal flight position above and below a horizontal plane, the horizontal plane being arranged parallel to a plane spanned by the roll axis of the aircraft and by the pitch axis of the aircraft.
• the horizontal plane In level flight, the flow in Horizontal flight direction one behind the other arranged swivel drive units not to each other, so that no losses in efficiency occur as a result.
• the horizontal plane can also coincide with the plane spanned by the roll axis of the aircraft and by the pitch axis of the aircraft.
• two swivel drive units arranged one behind the other in the horizontal flight direction are arranged in a vertical flight position within the horizontal plane.
• a uniform ground effect of the swivel drive units oriented in the vertical flight attitude is achieved, so that a smoother flight behavior is achieved, in particular in the take-off and landing phase of the aircraft.
• minor deviations from such an arrangement which can be attributed to manufacturing tolerances, for example, do not impair the flight behavior of the aircraft or only impair it slightly.
• a vertical distance between the pivoting drive unit and a wing plane spanned by the wing can be predetermined by an angle of attack enclosed between a longitudinal axis of the support arm and the wing plane.
• the angle of attack can be predetermined in such a way that the swivel drive units are arranged essentially in the horizontal plane in the vertical flight position and are arranged above and below the horizontal surface in a horizontal flight position.
• the support arms are on the wing arranged such that a first pivot drive unit is in the vertical flight attitude in level flight direction in front of the wing and a second pivot drive unit is behind the wing.
• the support arms can be designed and arranged on the wing in such a way that the pivoting drive units arranged one behind the other in the horizontal flight direction are arranged essentially below and above the wing in the horizontal flight position. Due to the arrangement of the rotary drive units in horizontal flight direction in front of and behind the wing, this can be lengthened and additional wing stretching can be generated. This reduces the induced drag of the wings in level flight and improves flight performance.
• an advantageous embodiment of the invention provides that the vertical drive units arranged one behind the other in horizontal flight direction are arranged within the horizontal plane. In this way, in the vertical flight phase near the ground, a uniform ground effect of the vertical drive units oriented in the vertical flight attitude is achieved.
• an advantageous embodiment of the inventive idea provides that the pivoting drive units each have a pivoting device so that a pivoting movement of the pivoting drive units can be carried out independently of one another. Due to the redundancy of several swiveling swivel drive units, the maneuverability of the aircraft even if one fails
• Pivoting drive unit remain intact, so that the aircraft can continue flying.
• the pivoting drive units and the vertical drive units are propeller drives or impeller drives or jet engines.
• Propeller drives are expediently rigid or designed with rotor blade adjustment.
• FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of an aircraft taking off vertically in level flight
• FIG. 2 shows a schematic representation of an aircraft taking off vertically in vertical flight
• FIG. 3 shows a schematic representation of an aircraft taking off vertically in a front view in level flight.
• FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of an aircraft 1 taking off vertically in level flight.
• the aircraft 1 has two wings 3 arranged on a fuselage 2 of the aircraft 1 .
• Vertical drive units 6 each have a support arm 7 with which the rotary drive units 5 and the
• Vertical drive units 6 are fixed to the wing 3.
• the swivel drive units 5 can be brought into a vertical flight position and into a horizontal flight position.
• the vertical drive unit 6 are rigidly arranged in a vertical flight position. during one
• the swivel drive units 5 are swiveled in or against the horizontal flight direction 4, so that the swivel drive units 5 generate the drive necessary for the horizontal flight movement.
• the vertical drive units 6, which are rigidly arranged on the wings 3 and are oriented in a vertical flight position, generate the lift necessary for the vertical flight movement only in the vertical flight phase.
• a first distance 8 between the two pivoting drive units 5 arranged one behind the other in the horizontal flight direction 4 and a longitudinal axis 9 of the aircraft 1 is smaller than a second distance 10 between the two vertical drive units 6 arranged one behind the other in the horizontal flight direction 4 and the longitudinal axis 9 of the aircraft 1.
• FIG. 2 shows a schematic representation of the aircraft 1 taking off vertically in a vertical flight.
• Vertical drive units 6 each have a support arm 7 with which the rotary drive units 5 and the
• Vertical drive units 6 are fixed to the wing 3.
• a vertical distance 11 between the pivoting drive unit 6 and a wing plane 12 spanned by the wing 3 can be predetermined by an angle of attack 13 enclosed between a longitudinal axis of the support arm 7 and the wing plane 12 .
• the swivel drive units 5 are shown in a vertical flight position.
• the vertical drive unit 6 are rigidly arranged in a vertical flight position.
• the pivoting drive units 5 are pivoted into the vertical flight position, so that the pivoting drive units 5, which are rigidly arranged on the wings 3, and the
• Vertical drive units 6 generate the lift necessary for vertical flight movement.
• Figure 3 is a schematic representation of the vertical take-off aircraft 1 in a front view
• the two pivoting drive units 5 arranged one behind the other in the horizontal flight direction 4, not shown in Figure 3, are arranged in a horizontal flight position above and below a horizontal plane 14, with the horizontal plane 14 being parallel to a axis defined by a roll axis 15 of the aircraft 1 and by a pitch axis 16 of the aircraft 1 spanned level is arranged.
• the swivel drive units 5 arranged one behind the other in the horizontal flight position in the horizontal flight direction 4 do not flow against each other.

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• Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
• Aviation & Aerospace Engineering (AREA)
• Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
• Remote Sensing (AREA)
• Chemical & Material Sciences (AREA)
• Combustion & Propulsion (AREA)
• Transmission Devices (AREA)
• Retarders (AREA)
• Physical Or Chemical Processes And Apparatus (AREA)
• Liquid Crystal Substances (AREA)

Priority Applications (5)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=81850108

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (7)

Cited By (3)

Families Citing this family (2)

Citations (6)

Family Cites Families (7)

• 2021
  • 2021-04-26 DE DE102021110634.6A patent/DE102021110634A1/de active Pending
• 2022
  • 2022-04-26 EP EP22725806.8A patent/EP4326614A1/de active Pending
  • 2022-04-26 US US18/557,124 patent/US20240217651A1/en active Pending
  • 2022-04-26 JP JP2023565224A patent/JP2024516181A/ja active Pending
  • 2022-04-26 WO PCT/EP2022/061078 patent/WO2022229201A1/de not_active Ceased
  • 2022-04-26 AU AU2022267733A patent/AU2022267733A1/en active Pending
  • 2022-04-26 CN CN202280043834.3A patent/CN117545690A/zh active Pending

Patent Citations (6)

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