CN115476994B - Foldable wing sail for unmanned sailboat - Google Patents

Abstract

The invention relates to a wing sail for an unmanned sailing boat, in particular to a foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailing boat, which adopts a multi-connecting rod and cam mechanism to realize folding and stretching of a hard wing sail, and adopts a mode of combining flexible canvas with a hard carbon fiber skin to realize plane folding of the wing sail of a plane. The invention has simple structure, exquisite design, reliable and stable mechanism and better engineering practicability, can simplify the guarantee measures of sailing boat arrangement and recovery, placement and transportation and the like by controlling the plane folding of the wing sails, and can realize the stabilization and the stabilization of the sailing boat under complex sea conditions. The folding wing sail structure designed by the invention can improve the adaptability of the unmanned sailing boat to the open sea high sea condition, improves the all-weather observation capability of the unmanned sailing boat, and has great significance for improving the long-term acquisition capability of the unmanned sailing boat for realizing the high-resolution environmental elements of the sea-air interface under the high sea condition.

Description

Foldable wing sail for unmanned sailboat

Technical Field

The invention relates to a wing sail for an unmanned sailboat, in particular to a foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat, which is suitable for unmanned sailboats at sea.

Background Art

Marine science is a science based on observation. Unmanned sailboats are a new type of sea-air interface observation robot that can realize large-scale on-site real-time observation of the sea-air interface and is driven by marine renewable energy. They have great advantages in long-term and real-time observation of the sea-air interface. Existing unmanned sailboats are mainly used for offshore observations. With the expansion of operating sea areas, the extension of operating time, and the enrichment of application scenarios, it is an inevitable trend for unmanned sailboats to move to the deep sea. Wing sails are important driving components of unmanned sailboats. Due to the existence of towering wingsails, unmanned sailboats are greatly restricted in storage and transportation, deployment and recovery, and long-term operation in high sea conditions.

Summary of the invention

In view of the above problems existing in the wing sails of existing unmanned sailboats, in order to improve the convenience of sailboat use and adaptability to sea conditions, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a foldable wing sail for unmanned sailboats. The foldable wing sail for unmanned sailboats can improve the cheapness of unmanned sailboat deployment, recovery, storage and transportation, reduce the rolling and increase the stability of unmanned sailboats, improve the adaptability of unmanned sailboats to sea conditions, and promote the technological progress and observation application of unmanned sailboats.

The objective of the present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions:

The present invention comprises an upper frame of a wing sail, an upper skin of a wing sail, a lower frame of a wing sail, a lower skin of a wing sail, a multi-link and a cam mechanism, wherein the upper skin of the wing sail is mounted on the upper frame of the wing sail, a solar panel is mounted on the upper skin of the wing sail, the lower skin of the wing sail is mounted on the lower frame of the wing sail, the bottom of the lower frame of the wing sail is connected to the hull of an unmanned sailboat, and the upper frame of the wing sail is hinged to the lower frame of the wing sail; the multi-link and cam mechanism comprises a pushing part, an articulated slide groove, a cam mechanism and a connecting rod, the articulated slide groove is mounted inside the lower frame of the wing sail, a slide groove is provided on the articulated slide groove, one end of the cam mechanism is connected to the articulated slide groove and/or The lower frame of the wing sail is hinged, the other end of the cam mechanism is hinged to one end of the connecting rod, the other end of the connecting rod is hinged to the upper frame of the wing sail, the pushing part is installed inside the lower frame of the wing sail, and is connected to the solar panel, the output end of the pushing part is connected with a sliding rod, the sliding rod passes through a cam groove with upper and lower dead points opened on the cam mechanism and is inserted into the sliding groove; the pushing part drives the sliding rod to slide up and down in the sliding groove, and the sliding rod moves back and forth between the upper and lower dead points in the cam groove while sliding up and down in the sliding groove, thereby driving the cam mechanism to swing, and then driving the upper frame of the wing sail and the upper skin of the wing sail to fold or stretch through the connecting rod.

Wherein: the hinged slide is a U-shaped frame structure, and slides are symmetrically opened on both sides of the U-shape along the length direction, and the positions close to the slides on the same side of the two sides of the U-shape are hinge points D hinged to one end of the cam mechanism.

The body of the cam mechanism is a U-shaped frame structure, and cam grooves are symmetrically opened on both sides of the U-shape along the length direction. One end of the body is a hinge point D hinged to the hinged slide groove and/or the lower frame of the wingsail, and the other end of the body is a hinge point C hinged to one end of the connecting rod.

The cam groove is in a "Y" shape, and the three endpoints of the "Y" shape are all arcs, and the two endpoints of the upper end of the "Y" shape are respectively the upper dead point and the lower dead point of the sliding rod.

The upper frame of the wing sail includes an upper sail bottom bracket, a middle rib, an internal support rod and a lower rib. The lower rib is fixed to the upper sail bottom bracket, the middle rib is located above the lower rib and is connected to the lower rib through the internal support rod.

The bottom bracket of the upper sail includes a bracket and an airfoil rib at the bottom of the upper sail, the lower rib is fixed to the upper surface of the airfoil rib at the bottom of the upper sail, the bracket is fixed to the lower surface of the airfoil rib at the bottom of the upper sail, and the bracket is respectively provided with a hinge point A hinged to the lower frame of the wing sail and a hinge point B hinged to the other end of the connecting rod.

An upper sail limiting groove is arranged on the bracket.

A lower sail limit block is arranged on the top of the wing sail lower frame for limiting the position of the wing sail upper frame and the wing sail upper skin when extending; a bottom airfoil rib is arranged on the bottom of the wing sail lower frame; a wing sail flange for connecting to the hull is arranged on the lower surface of the bottom airfoil rib; an airfoil lower sail frame is arranged in the middle of the wing sail lower frame; and the articulated slide groove and the cam mechanism are both located inside the lower sail frame.

The lower skin of the wing sail is divided into two parts, the front part is the lower sail skin used to maintain the airfoil structure of the wing sail, and the rear part is a flexible canvas used to maintain the shape of the wing sail and to be folded and embedded.

The pushing part is an electric push rod, and the electric push rod is hinged to the lower frame of the wingsail through a hinge point E.

The advantages and positive effects of the present invention are:

1. The present invention can realize the folding and extension of the wing sail through a single electric push rod. When installed on an unmanned sailboat, it can lower the center of gravity of the sailboat, realize active adjustment of the sailboat to reduce the rolling and increase the stability, and improve the sailboat's adaptability to sea conditions.

2. The present invention adopts a multi-link and cam mechanism to realize the limited self-locking of the extension and folding of the wing sail, thereby improving the reliability of the mechanism and the stability of the wing sail.

3. The present invention adopts a design method of combining a hard carbon fiber skin and a flexible canvas, which has a simple structure and a sophisticated design. It can realize the folding and extension of the wing-shaped sail in a plane. The exterior of the wing sail fits smoothly in the extended and folded states, which is beneficial to maintaining the aerodynamic performance of the wing sail.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG1 is a schematic diagram of a three-dimensional structure of the present invention;

FIG2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention in an extended state;

FIG3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention in a folded state;

FIG4 is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the multi-link and cam mechanism of the present invention;

FIG5 is a schematic diagram of the upper sail structure of the present invention;

FIG6A is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the upper sail bottom bracket of the present invention;

FIG6B is a front view of the structure of the upper sail bottom bracket of the present invention;

FIG7A is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the hinged slideway of the present invention;

FIG7B is a front view of the structure of the hinged slide of the present invention;

FIG8A is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the cam mechanism of the present invention;

FIG8B is a front view of the structure of the cam mechanism of the present invention;

FIG9 is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present invention installed on an unmanned sailboat;

FIG10A is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention installed on an unmanned sailboat in a folded state;

FIG10B is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention installed on an unmanned sailboat in the process of stretching and opening or folding and contracting;

FIG10C is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention installed on an unmanned sailboat in an extended state;

Among them: 1 is a solar panel, 2 is the upper skin of the wing sail, 3 is the bottom bracket of the upper sail, 301 is a bracket, 302 is the upper sail limit groove, 303 is the wing rib at the bottom of the upper sail, 4 is the lower sail frame, 5 is a multi-link and cam mechanism, 501 is an electric push rod, 502 is a hinged slide, 503 is a cam mechanism, 504 is a connecting rod, 505 is a hinge point A, 506 is a hinge point B, 507 is a hinge point C, 508 is a hinge Joint D, 509 is a sliding rod, 510 is a hinge point E, 6 is a bottom airfoil rib, 7 is a wing sail flange, 8 is a lower sail skin, 9 is a flexible canvas, 10 is a lower sail limit block, 11 is a middle rib, 12 is an internal support rod, 13 is a lower rib, 14 is a slide groove, 15 is a cam groove, 16 is a main body, 17 is a weather station, 18 is a hull, 19 is a keel, 20 is a foldable wing sail, 21 is an antenna, and 22 is a stern rudder.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

As shown in Figs. 1 to 3 and Fig. 9, the present invention includes an upper frame of the wing sail, an upper skin of the wing sail 2, a lower frame of the wing sail, a lower skin of the wing sail, and a multi-link and cam mechanism 5. The upper skin of the wing sail 2 is mounted on the upper frame of the wing sail, a solar panel 1 is mounted on the upper skin of the wing sail 2, the lower skin of the wing sail is mounted on the lower frame of the wing sail, the bottom of the lower frame of the wing sail is connected to the hull 19 of the unmanned sailboat, and the upper frame of the wing sail is hinged to the lower frame of the wing sail. The foldable wing sail 20 is mounted on the upper surface of the hull 18, and a weather station 17, a keel 19, a GPS antenna 21 and a stern rudder 22 are respectively mounted on the hull 18. The foldable wing sail 20 is folded or unfolded according to the deployment and recovery of the unmanned sailboat and the need for navigation safety.

The multi-link and cam mechanism 5 is used to realize the folding of the wing sail plane. As shown in Figures 1 to 4, the multi-link and cam mechanism 5 of this embodiment includes a push part, a hinged slide 502, a cam mechanism 503 and a connecting rod 504. The hinged slide 502 is installed inside the lower frame of the wing sail. The hinged slide 502 is provided with a slide 14. One end of the cam mechanism 503 is hinged to the hinged slide 502 and/or the lower frame of the wing sail. The other end of the cam mechanism 503 is hinged to one end of the connecting rod 504. The other end of the connecting rod 504 is hinged to the upper frame of the wing sail. The push part is installed inside the lower frame of the wing sail and is connected to the solar panel 1. The output end of the push part is connected to a sliding rod 509. The sliding rod 509 of this embodiment is cylindrical. The sliding rod 509 passes through the cam groove 15 with upper and lower dead points provided on the cam mechanism 503 and is inserted into the slide 14. As shown in Figures 7A and 7B, the hinged slide groove 502 of this embodiment is a U-shaped frame structure, and slide grooves 14 are symmetrically opened on both sides of the U along the length direction. The slide groove 14 of this embodiment is a strip groove, and the two ends of the strip groove are circular arcs; the two sides of one end of the cam mechanism 503 of this embodiment are respectively hinged to the hinged slide groove 502, and the positions of the slide grooves 14 on the same side on both sides of the U are the hinge points D508 hinged to one end of the cam mechanism 503.

The upper frame of the wing sail and the upper skin of the wing sail 2 are the main movable parts of the foldable wing sail. As shown in Figures 1 to 5 and Figures 6A and 6B, the upper frame of the wing sail in this embodiment is an aluminum alloy structure for support and strength increase; the upper frame of the wing sail includes a bottom bracket 3 of the upper sail, a middle rib plate 11, an internal support rod 12 and a lower rib plate 13, the bottom bracket 3 of the upper sail includes a bracket 301 and a wing-shaped rib plate 303 at the bottom of the upper sail, the lower rib plate 13 is fixed to the upper surface of the wing-shaped rib plate 303 at the bottom of the upper sail, the middle rib plate 11 is located above the lower rib plate 13, and is connected to the lower rib plate 13 through multiple (two in this embodiment) internal support rods 12. The bracket 301 is fixed to the lower surface of the wing-shaped rib plate 303 at the bottom of the upper sail, and the bracket 301 is respectively provided with a hinge point A505 hinged to the lower frame of the wing sail and a hinge point B506 hinged to the other end of the connecting rod 504. The bracket 301 is also provided with an upper sail limit groove 302. The upper skin 2 of the wing sail of this embodiment is a carbon fiber structure for airfoil shape preservation, and solar panels 1 are installed on both sides of the upper skin 2 of the wing sail for environmental energy of the unmanned sailboat.

As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, the lower frame of the wingsail in this embodiment is an assembled structure, which is easy to install, adjust and replace. The top of the lower frame of the wingsail is provided with a lower sail limit block 10 for limiting the extension of the upper frame of the wingsail and the upper skin of the wingsail. When the foldable wingsail 20 is unfolded, the lower sail limit block 10 is inserted into the upper sail limit groove 302 to achieve the limit. The bottom of the lower frame of the wingsail is provided with a bottom airfoil rib 6, and the lower surface of the bottom airfoil rib 6 is provided with a wingsail flange 7 for connecting with the hull 19. The middle of the lower frame of the wingsail is an airfoil lower sail frame 4, which is used for fixing and installing the lower skin of the wingsail. The articulated slide 502 and the cam mechanism 503 are both located inside the lower sail frame 4. The lower skin of the wingsail in this embodiment is divided into two parts, the front part is the lower sail skin 8, which is a hard carbon fiber airfoil skin for maintaining the wingsail airfoil structure, and the rear part is a flexible canvas 9 for the wingsail to maintain the shape and fold and embed, thereby improving the structural stability of the foldable wingsail and the integrity of the airfoil. The driving part of this embodiment is an electric push rod 501, which is hinged to the bottom airfoil rib 6 in the lower frame of the wingsail through a hinge point E510.

As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4 and FIGS. 8A and 8B, the body 16 of the cam mechanism 503 of this embodiment is a U-shaped frame structure, and cam grooves 15 are symmetrically provided on both sides of the U-shaped structure along the length direction. The cam grooves 15 are in a "Y" shape, and the three endpoints of the "Y" shape are arcs. The two endpoints of the upper end of the "Y" shape are respectively the upper stop point and the lower stop point of the sliding rod 509. The sliding rod 509 passes through the endpoint of the lower end of the "Y" shape during the sliding process between the two endpoints of the upper end of the "Y". One end of the body 16 is a hinge point D508 hinged to the hinged slide groove 502, and the other end of the body 16 is a hinge point C507 hinged to one end of the connecting rod 504.

By accessing the unmanned sailboat control system (existing technology), the present invention can realize that the electric push rod 501 in the wing sail works according to the control command of the control system, and then automatically folds and extends, thereby realizing the unmanned sailboat's anti-roll and anti-stabilization, and improving the unmanned sailboat's adaptability to sea conditions and all-weather marine observation capabilities.

The working principle of the present invention is:

When the foldable wing sail 20 of the unmanned sailboat is in the extended state (as shown in FIG. 10C ), the electric push rod 501 is in the extended state and is hinged to the bottom airfoil rib 6 in the lower frame of the wing sail through the hinge point E510. When the wing sail needs to be folded, the electric push rod 501 is first controlled to retract, driving the sliding rod 509 to move linearly along the slide groove 14 on the hinge slide groove 502. The sliding rod 509 moves in the cam groove 15 of the cam mechanism 503, driving the cam mechanism 503 to rotate in a fan shape along the hinge point D508. The cam mechanism 503 drives the connecting rod 504 to follow and drives the bottom bracket 3 of the upper sail to rotate around the hinge point A505 (as shown in FIG. 10B ). The electric push rod 501 drives the connecting rod 504 to follow and drives the bottom bracket 3 of the upper sail to rotate around the hinge point A505 (as shown in FIG. 10B ). The sliding rod 509 moves from the upper dead center to the lower dead center along the sliding groove 14 on the hinged sliding groove 502. At this time, the sliding rod 509 moves from one end point (i.e., the upper dead center) of the upper end of the "Y"-shaped cam groove 15 to the other end point (i.e., the lower dead center). The cam mechanism 503 and the connecting rod 504 fold downward from the colinear dead center, correspondingly realizing that the upper part of the wing sail is driven by the linear motion to rotate 90 degrees around the hinge point A505, thereby realizing the wing sail from the extended state to the folded state and locked (as shown in Figure 10A). The upper sail limit groove 302 of the upper sail bottom bracket 3 is separated from the lower sail limit block 10, the flexible canvas 9 is compressed, embedded in the lower sail skin 8 and automatically hidden, and the foldable wing sail 20 is completely folded.

When the foldable wing sail 20 of the unmanned sailboat is in a folded state (as shown in FIG. 10A ), the electric push rod 501 is in a retracted state. When the wing sail needs to be extended, the electric push rod 501 is first controlled to be pushed out, driving the sliding rod 509 to make a linear motion along the slide groove 14 on the hinged slide groove 502, and the sliding rod 509 moves in the cam groove 15 of the cam mechanism 503, driving the cam rod 503 to make a fan-shaped rotation along the hinge point D508, and the cam mechanism 503 drives the connecting rod 504 to follow and drives the bottom bracket 3 of the upper sail to rotate around the hinge point A505 (as shown in FIG. 10B ). The electric push rod 501 drives the sliding rod 509 to move from the lower dead center to the upper dead center along the slide groove 14 on the hinged slide groove 502. At this time, the sliding rod 509 moves from one end point (i.e., the lower dead center) of the upper end of the "Y"-shaped cam groove 15 to the other end point (i.e., the upper dead center), and the cam mechanism 503 and the connecting rod 504 reach the colinear dead point from folding upward, correspondingly driving the upper part of the wing sail from the folded state to the fully extended state and locked (as shown in FIG. 10C ). The upper sail limiting groove 302 of the upper sail bottom bracket 3 is in contact and clamped with the lower sail limiting block 10, the flexible canvas 9 is stretched and tensioned, and the foldable wing sail 20 is fully extended.

The above contents are further detailed descriptions of the present invention in combination with specific preferred embodiments, and the specific implementation of the present invention cannot be considered to be limited to these descriptions. Without departing from the concept of the present invention, several simple deductions or substitutions made should be deemed to belong to the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims (10)

1. A foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat, characterized in that it comprises an upper wing sail frame, an upper wing sail skin (2), a lower wing sail frame, a lower wing sail skin and a multi-link and cam mechanism (5), wherein the upper wing sail skin (2) is mounted on the upper wing sail frame, a solar panel (1) is mounted on the upper wing sail skin (2), the lower wing sail skin is mounted on the lower wing sail frame, the bottom of the lower wing sail frame is connected to the hull (19) of the unmanned sailboat, and the upper wing sail frame is hinged to the lower wing sail frame; the multi-link and cam mechanism (5) comprises a pushing part, an articulated slide groove (502), a cam mechanism (503) and a connecting rod (504), the articulated slide groove (502) is mounted inside the lower wing sail frame, a slide groove (14) is provided on the articulated slide groove (502), one end of the cam mechanism (503) is connected to the articulated slide groove (502) and/or or hinged to the lower frame of the wing sail, the other end of the cam mechanism (503) is hinged to one end of the connecting rod (504), the other end of the connecting rod (504) is hinged to the upper frame of the wing sail, the pushing part is installed inside the lower frame of the wing sail and is connected to the solar panel (1), the output end of the pushing part is connected to a sliding rod (509), the sliding rod (509) passes through a cam groove (15) with upper and lower dead points on the cam mechanism (503) and is inserted into the sliding groove (14); the pushing part drives the sliding rod (509) to slide up and down in the sliding groove (14), and the sliding rod (509) moves back and forth between the upper and lower dead points in the cam groove (15) while sliding up and down in the sliding groove (14), thereby driving the cam mechanism (503) to swing, and then driving the upper frame of the wing sail and the upper skin (2) of the wing sail to fold or stretch through the connecting rod (504). 2. The foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 1 is characterized in that: the hinged slide groove (502) is a U-shaped frame structure, and slide grooves (14) are symmetrically opened on both sides of the U-shape along the length direction, and the positions on both sides of the U-shape close to the same side slide grooves (14) are hinge points D (508) hinged to one end of the cam mechanism (503). 3. The foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 1 is characterized in that: the body (16) of the cam mechanism (503) is a U-shaped frame structure, and cam grooves (15) are symmetrically opened on both sides of the U-shape along the length direction, one end of the body (16) is a hinge point D (508) hinged to the hinge slot (502) and/or the lower frame of the wing sail, and the other end of the body (16) is a hinge point C (507) hinged to one end of the connecting rod (504). 4. The foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 1 or 3 is characterized in that: the cam groove (15) is in a "Y" shape, the three endpoints of the "Y" shape are all arcs, and the two endpoints of the upper end of the "Y" shape are respectively the upper dead point and the lower dead point of the sliding rod (509). 5. The foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 1 is characterized in that the upper skeleton of the wing sail includes an upper sail bottom bracket (3), a middle rib (11), an internal support rod (12) and a lower rib (13), wherein the lower rib (13) is fixed to the upper sail bottom bracket (3), the middle rib (11) is located above the lower rib (13), and is connected to the lower rib (13) through the internal support rod (12). 6. The foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 5 is characterized in that: the bottom bracket (3) of the upper sail includes a bracket (301) and an airfoil rib (303) at the bottom of the upper sail, the lower rib (13) is fixed to the upper surface of the airfoil rib (303) at the bottom of the upper sail, the bracket (301) is fixed to the lower surface of the airfoil rib (303) at the bottom of the upper sail, and the bracket (301) is respectively provided with a hinge point A (505) hinged to the lower frame of the wing sail and a hinge point B (506) hinged to the other end of the connecting rod (504). 7. The foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 6, characterized in that an upper sail limiting groove (302) is provided on the bracket (301). 8. The foldable wingsail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 1 is characterized in that: the top of the wing sail lower frame is provided with a lower sail limit block (10) for limiting the extension of the wing sail upper frame and the wing sail upper skin, the bottom of the wing sail lower frame is provided with a bottom airfoil rib (6), the lower surface of the bottom airfoil rib (6) is provided with a wing sail flange (7) for connecting to the hull (19), the middle of the wing sail lower frame is an airfoil lower sail frame (4), and the articulated slide groove (502) and the cam mechanism (503) are both located inside the lower sail frame (4). 9. The foldable wingsail for unmanned sailboat according to claim 1 is characterized in that the lower skin of the wingsail is divided into two parts, front and rear. The front part is the lower sail skin (8) for maintaining the airfoil structure of the wingsail, and the rear part is a flexible canvas (9) for maintaining the shape of the wingsail and folding. 10. The foldable wing sail for an unmanned sailboat according to claim 1, characterized in that the driving part is an electric push rod (501), and the electric push rod (501) is hinged to the lower frame of the wing sail through a hinge point E (510).