KR102713075B1 - Drone available for thrust vector control and Method for controlling the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A drone capable of increasing a cruising speed of the drone is provided. The drone is characterized by including an airplane fuselage, a pair of fixed wings formed horizontally on both sides of the airplane fuselage in a transverse direction, four thrust devices arranged at the front and rear ends of the pair of fixed wings and changing a thrust vector according to thrust vector control, and a horizontal stabilizer arranged at the rear of the airplane fuselage and rotating up and down.

Description

{Drone available for thrust vector control and Method for controlling the same}

The present invention relates to drone technology, and more particularly, to a 45° thrust quadrotor drone with fixed wings.

In particular, the present invention relates to a drone and a control method thereof capable of maximizing the utilization rate of thrust according to the purpose during takeoff, landing, and cruising by changing the thrust vector.

Vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drones are drones that can take off and land vertically and fly horizontally, and can be used in various fields. Vertical takeoff and landing drones can be used in the military as unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, unmanned attack aircraft, and unmanned transport aircraft.

Since vertical takeoff and landing is possible, it has the advantage of being able to take off and land in limited spaces, unlike existing airplanes or helicopters. In a country like ours where there are not enough runways and the terrain is mountainous, it is more appropriate to develop and operate a vertical takeoff and landing drone than a fixed-wing drone. Vertical takeoff and landing drones can be used for various purposes in the private sector. They are used in various fields such as delivery, filming, video recording, and disaster relief.

The first type of vertical takeoff and landing drone is a hybrid (Lift Cruise) drone. A hybrid drone is the most common VTOL drone, and is a hybrid of a quad-rotor drone and a fixed-wing drone. When the drone takes off and lands, it flies like a quad-rotor drone using four vertical motors (or engines), and when cruising, it flies like a fixed-wing drone using the horizontal motors (or engines). When the drone cruises, the lift is generated by the fixed wing, so the vertical thrust device (motor or engine) does not need to be used.

The advantages of this hybrid drone include simple structure and easy control. Sufficient lift can be secured even under vertical takeoff and landing ↔ cruising (horizontal flight) conditions. The technology is highly mature because it can fully utilize existing technologies. Therefore, the development/mass production costs are low.

A disadvantage is that the drone must have thrusters for different purposes installed. That is, the horizontal thruster is not needed when the drone is taking off and landing, and the vertical thruster is not needed when the drone is cruising, but all the thrusters must be present on the drone body.

In particular, when the drone is cruising at high speed, the vertical thrust device (motor + propeller) can actually act as fluid resistance.

Next up is the tail sitter drone. Tail sitter drones are a special type of VTOL (Vertical Take-Off and Landing) drone that can take off and land vertically. This type of drone gets its name from the fact that it usually lands and takes off in a "tail-sitting" manner. That is, the drone is upright with the propeller pointing upwards.

One of the main advantages of these tail-sitter drones is that they combine the characteristics of a fixed-wing aircraft, which can take off and land vertically like a helicopter, while also being able to fly at high speeds. This allows them to take off and land in tight or confined spaces, and also to travel long distances quickly.

The downside is that it is quite difficult to control the drone during the transition between horizontal flight and takeoff and landing, which requires complex control algorithms such as altitude adjustment and speed control.

Next up are tilt rotor drones. Tilt rotor drones, as the name suggests, are drones that have a feature where the axis on which the propeller or rotor rotates can tilt. This feature allows the drone to seamlessly transition between vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and high-speed forward flight.

Tilt-rotor drones change between a helicopter mode for vertical takeoff and landing and a fixed-wing airplane mode for forward flight by changing the angle of the propellers. The advantages of these tilt-rotor drones include the ability to operate in areas with limited takeoff and landing space, while flying long distances at high speeds and with efficient energy consumption like fixed-wing aircraft.

As a disadvantage, the mechanism for adjusting the angle of the motor (engine) + propeller is complex, and maintaining stability during the process of switching between takeoff and landing mode and forward flight mode requires a high level of control technology.

Next, we have the 45° thrust type, among which we have the 45° thrust type #1 drone. The 45° thrust type #1 drone is a model called “FIXAR 007”. It is equipped with two thrust devices (left/right) in the front and two thrust devices (left/right) in the rear, centered on the fixed wing and the fuselage.

When the drone lands on the ground, all four thrust directions are oriented diagonally (approximately 45 degrees) relative to the ground. When the drone takes off, the drone rises slightly tilted (approximately 45 degrees) rather than vertically due to the tilted thrust vector, but immediately after the drone rises into the air, the thrust is controlled so that the thrust vector becomes perpendicular to the ground and rises.

Normally, when a drone is cruising, the thrust vector is 45° to the flight direction, and the chord line of the fixed wing connected to the drone body is parallel to the flight direction. In other words, the thrust vector is tilted, but the fixed wing is located in the forward direction of the drone. As the drone's flight speed increases, the fixed wing provides additional lift to the drone body.

Also, the landing is the same as the takeoff, and basically, the FIXAR 007 can be seen as flying in the same way as the well-known quadrotor drones. However, the FIXAR 007 drone has a separate fixed wing, unlike the existing quadrotor drones, so it can obtain more lift during the cruise. In other words, it can be seen as a quadrotor drone with an additional fixed wing installed. For this reason, the FIXAR 007 drone can fly longer than the existing quadrotor drones.

An advantage of this 45° thrust type #1 drone is that the number of thrust devices can be reduced because there are no separate horizontal and vertical thrust devices.

In addition, the structure is simple and the thrust control is easy. Basically, it can always maintain lift regardless of the transition from takeoff and landing to cruise mode. In other words, the fixed wing only adds lift to the drone body to reduce the burden of thrust, and the fixed wing does not take charge of 100% of the lift. Therefore, the flight safety is high. The manufacturing cost is low because parts can be shared with commercially successful quadrotor drones.

The disadvantage is that when the drone is cruising, only a portion of the thrust is used for forward flight, so the speed may be somewhat low. When initially taking off, the drone body may fly in a 45° direction (thrust direction).

Next, we can look at the 45° thrust type #2 drone. The 45° thrust type #2 drone is the STRIX VTOL drone developed by BAE. It can be seen as having a similar form to the FIXAR 007 described above, but there are significant technical differences.

The STRIX drone has two thrusters on the front fixed wing and two on the rear fixed wing. When the drone is on the ground (landing), the front/rear fixed wings and thrusters are tilted at approximately 45° to the ground.

Since the thrust devices are tilted at about 45 degrees, the front and rear thrust devices can be controlled to take off the drone. When taking off, the front of the STRIX drone can be lifted up through the thrust control. At this time, the rear wheels are kept in contact with the ground. When the drone is upright in a vertical direction with the ground, the thrust of all the thrust devices is increased to rise upward.

When the drone is cruising, the thrust vector and the chord line of the fixed wing are in the same direction as the direction of travel. In other words, unlike FIXAR 007, the thrust vector, fixed wing chord line, and flight direction are all aligned in the same direction. Therefore, the lift that the drone gains when cruising is 100% handled by the fixed wing. Landing is the same as takeoff.

Basically, the STRIX drone can be seen as flying in the same way as a fixed-wing drone. The tail-sitter drone described above also flies in the same way as a fixed-wing drone. That is, the tail-sitter drone's thrust vector, fixed-wing chord line, and flight direction are all aligned in the same direction. However, the drone takes off and lands with its tail close to the ground so that the thrust vector is perpendicular to the ground, and the 45° thrust type takes off and lands with the thrust vector, fixed-wing chord line, and flight direction all aligned in the same direction, and the thrust vector is approximately 45° to the ground.

The advantage of this 45° thrust type #2 drone is that the number of thrust devices can be reduced because there are no separate horizontal thrust devices and vertical thrust devices. When the drone cruises, the thrust vector, fixed wing chord line, and flight direction are all aligned in the same direction. Therefore, the flight speed is fast during cruise.

The disadvantage is that it is relatively difficult to control the drone's thrust. If you want to use the thrust entirely to lift the drone during takeoff, you have to raise the drone's nose to 90 degrees. Then, the drone will stand upright like a rocket launch.

However, controlling it like this is difficult. This is because the initial thrust vector of the drone is about 45°, so it is difficult to lift only the front nose while keeping the rear wheels fixed on the ground. In other words, since the thrust vector is about 45°, the force that makes the drone move forward is also generated at the same time.

If the thrust control is not done properly, the drone will likely fly at a 45-degree angle relative to the ground when taking off. This takes up a lot of space. In other words, if you can keep the drone upright through precise thrust control during the initial takeoff, you can achieve high space efficiency, but if you simply apply thrust control, it will fly at about a 45-degree angle when taking off, so it is not space efficient.

Also, during cruising and takeoff and landing, if the thrust control is not done properly, lift can be lost, because the propeller power is not always used to lift the aircraft. Also, it is relatively expensive to manufacture.

1. Republic of Korea Patent Registration No. 10-2317660 (Registration Date: October 20, 2021)

The present invention has been proposed to solve the problems according to the above background technology, and its purpose is to provide a drone and a control method thereof capable of increasing the cruising speed of the drone.

In addition, another purpose of the present invention is to provide a drone and a control method thereof capable of maximizing the utilization of thrust according to the purpose during takeoff, landing, and cruising by changing the thrust vector.

In order to achieve the above-mentioned task, the present invention provides a drone capable of increasing the cruising speed of the drone.

The above drone,

airplane fuselage;

A pair of fixed wings formed horizontally on both sides of the aircraft fuselage in the transverse direction of the aircraft fuselage;

Four thrust devices arranged at the front and rear ends of a pair of fixed wings and changing the thrust vector according to thrust vector control; and

It is characterized by including a horizontal stabilizer positioned at the rear of the aircraft fuselage and rotating up and down.

In addition, the drone is characterized by including a first link joint and a second link joint for adjusting the angle of the four thrust devices.

In addition, the first link joint is characterized in that it is positioned on the first fixed wing among the pair of fixed wings at a certain interval from the outer surface of the aircraft fuselage.

In addition, the second link joint is characterized in that it is positioned on the second fixed wing among the pair of fixed wings at a certain interval from the outer surface of the aircraft fuselage.

In addition, the first link joint and the second link joint are characterized by having a four-section link form.

At this time, the first link joint is characterized by including: a 1-1 base link fixedly connected to the first fixed wing; a 1-2 vertical link rotatably connected to one end of the 1-1 base link and to which the 1-1 thrust device among the four thrust devices is fixedly connected; a 1-3 vertical link rotatably connected to the other end of the 1-1 base link and to which the 2-1 thrust device among the four thrust devices is fixedly connected; and a 1-4 horizontal link rotatably connected to the 1-2 vertical link and the 1-3 vertical link.

In addition, the second link joint is characterized by including: a 2-1 base link fixedly connected to the second fixed wing; a 2-2 vertical link rotatably connected to one end of the 2-1 base link and to which the 1-2 thrust device of the four thrust devices is fixedly connected; a 2-3 vertical link rotatably connected to the other end of the 2-1 base link and to which the 2-2 thrust device of the four thrust devices is fixedly connected; and a 2-4 horizontal link rotatably connected to the 2-2 vertical link and the 2-3 vertical link.

In addition, the 1st-3rd vertical links and the 2nd-3rd vertical links are characterized by having an inverted “ㄷ” shape that widens as it goes outward.

In addition, the horizontal fin is characterized in that it is fixedly connected to the upper portion between the 1-3 vertical link and the 2-3 vertical link.

In addition, the 1st to 4th horizontal links and the 2nd to 4th horizontal links are characterized in that driving arms are jointly connected to each other for horizontal movement.

In addition, when the drone takes off and lands, the 1-4th horizontal link and the 2-4th horizontal link are moved by the driving arm toward the 1-3rd vertical link and the 2-3rd vertical link, respectively, toward the rear of the drone or toward the 1-2nd vertical link and the 2-2nd vertical link, respectively, toward the front of the drone so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone becomes closer to the ground and vertical.

In addition, when the drone flies after ascending, the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone as a vector is parallel to the first fixed wing and the second fixed wing, and the 1-4th horizontal link and the 2-4th horizontal link are respectively moved by the driving arm toward the 1-2nd vertical link and the 2-2nd vertical link.

In addition, when the drone takes off, the 1-3rd vertical link and the 2-3rd vertical link are characterized in that a first constant angle (α°) is formed with the 1-1st base link and the 2-1st base link, respectively.

In addition, when the drone flies after ascending, the 1-3rd vertical link and the 2-3rd vertical link are characterized in that a second constant angle (β°) is formed with the 1-1st base link and the 2-1st base link, respectively.

Here, it is characterized in that the first constant angle (α°) is larger than the second constant angle (β°).

In addition, it is characterized in that a receiving portion is formed at both ends of the 1-1 base link and the 2-1 base link.

At this time, the receiving portion is characterized by having a “⊂” shape to limit the rotation angle of the 1st-3rd vertical links and the 2nd-3rd vertical links.

On the other hand, another embodiment of the present invention provides a method for controlling a drone, including: (a) a step of transmitting one of a takeoff command, a landing command, and a flight command to the drone; and (b) a step of changing a thrust vector according to thrust vector control based on one of the takeoff command, the landing command, and the flight command.

According to the present invention, the thrust vector can be changed according to the pilot's purpose.

In addition, other effects of the present invention include that it is faster and does not require much space during takeoff compared to the existing FIXAR 007 (a 45° thrust FPV (First Person View) quadrotor drone with fixed wings). Generally, the FIXAR 007 takes off in a 45° direction.

In addition, another effect of the present invention is that the flight time can be increased because thrust vector control can be performed.

In addition, another effect of the present invention is that the manufacturing cost is low because parts can be shared with commercially successful quadrotor drones (racing drones or aerial photography drones).

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a drone capable of thrust vector control according to one embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 is a circuit block diagram of the drone shown in Figure 1.
Figure 3 is a conceptual diagram of the takeoff operation of the drone illustrated in Figure 1.
Figure 4 is a conceptual diagram of the flight operation of the drone illustrated in Figure 1.
Figure 5 is a flowchart showing a drone control process according to one embodiment of the present invention.

The present invention can have various modifications and various embodiments, and specific embodiments are illustrated in the drawings and specifically described in the detailed description. However, this is not intended to limit the present invention to specific embodiments, but should be understood to include all modifications, equivalents, or substitutes included in the spirit and technical scope of the present invention.

When describing each drawing, similar reference numerals are used to refer to similar components.

The terms first, second, etc. may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. The terms are used only to distinguish one component from another.

For example, without departing from the scope of the present invention, the first component could be referred to as the second component, and similarly, the second component could also be referred to as the first component. The term "and/or" includes any combination of a plurality of related listed items or any item among a plurality of related listed items.

Unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein, including technical or scientific terms, have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this invention belongs.

Terms defined in commonly used dictionaries should be interpreted as having a meaning consistent with their meaning in the context of the relevant art, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense, unless expressly defined in this application.

Hereinafter, with reference to the attached drawings, a drone capable of thrust vector control and a control method thereof according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a drone (100) capable of thrust vector control according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 1, the drone may be configured to include an airplane fuselage (110), a pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) formed horizontally on both sides of the airplane fuselage (110) in a transverse direction, four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) arranged at the front and rear ends of the pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) and changing thrust vectors according to thrust vector control, a horizontal stabilizer (170) arranged at the rear end of the airplane fuselage (110) and rotating up and down, etc.

A pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) are provided with first and second link joints (141, 142) for adjusting the angles of four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2). In detail, the first link joint (141) is coupled to the first fixed wing (120-1), and the second link joint (142) is coupled to the second fixed wing (120-2). In addition, the first link joint (141) and the second link joint (142) are positioned at a certain interval from the outer surface of the aircraft fuselage (110) on the first fixed wing (120-1) and the second fixed wing (120-2), respectively.

In general, fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) only reduce the burden of thrust when the drone (100) is cruising, and the fixed wings do not take full responsibility for 100% of the lift. Therefore, it can be said that the flight safety of a 45° thrust type quadrotor drone is high.

The first link joint (141) is also designed in a four-section link form. In detail, it is configured to include a 1-1 base link (141-1) that is rigidly fixedly connected to the first fixed wing (120-1), a 1-2 vertical link (141-2) that is rotatably connected to one end of the 1-1 base link (141-1) and to which a 1-1 thrust device (130-1) is fixedly connected, a 1-3 vertical link (141-3) that is rotatably connected to the other end of the 1-1 base link (141-1) and to which a 2-1 thrust device (160-1) is fixedly connected, and a 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) that is rotatably connected to the 1-2 vertical link (141-2) and the 1-3 vertical link (141-3).

The second link joint (142) is also designed in a four-section link form. In detail, it is configured to include a 2-1 base link (142-1) that is rigidly fixedly connected to the second fixed wing (120-2), a 2-2 vertical link (142-2) that is rotatably connected to one end of the 2-1 base link (142-1) and to which a 1-2 thrust device (130-2) is fixedly connected, a 2-3 vertical link (142-3) that is rotatably connected to the other end of the 2-1 base link (142-1) and to which a 2-2 thrust device (160-2) is fixedly connected, and a 2-4 horizontal link (141-4) that is rotatably connected to the 2-2 vertical link (142-2) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3).

Links (141-1 to 141-4, 142-1 to 142-4) are connected through joints (101).

Among these links, receiving portions (102) are formed at both ends of the 1-1 base link (141-1) and the 2-1 base link (142-1). The receiving portions (102) are jointly connected to the upper portions of the 1-3 vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3) in a “⊂” shape, respectively. The receiving portions (102) perform the function of limiting the rotation angles of the 1-3 vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3) up and down.

In detail, the receiving portions (102) at both ends of the 1-1 base link (141-1) and the 2-1 base link (142-1) must be designed/manufactured in a fork shape ('⊂ ') because the motor continuously applies thrust to them and the rotation angle must be limited. If designed in a fork shape, the link rotation angle can be easily limited. It is the same principle as a fork on which a bicycle wheel is mounted.

In addition, the 1-3rd vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3rd vertical link (142-3) have an inverted "ㄷ" shape that widens outward. A horizontal fin (170) for changing the up-down direction is fixedly connected to the upper portion between the 1-3rd vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3rd vertical link (142-3).

The 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) are provided with a driving arm (150) for horizontal movement. That is, the driving arm (150) is jointly connected (i.e., hinge-connected) to the middle portion of each of the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) to move the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) forward or backward. Accordingly, the vertical links (141-2, 141-3, 142-2, 142-3) can be made into an acute or obtuse angle at 90° with respect to the horizontal base link (141-1, 142-1). That is, the angle of the thrust device (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) is adjusted. Therefore, the thrust vector generated from the thrust device can be changed.

The thrust vector is a direction that represents the drone's propulsion force, and by controlling the thrust vector, the drone's attitude can be adjusted in the desired direction. In particular, vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) drones require technology that can precisely control the thrust vector because they are capable of vertical takeoff and landing and horizontal flight.

A vertical takeoff and landing drone requires technology that can generate sufficient propulsion for vertical takeoff and landing. In one embodiment of the present invention, sufficient propulsion can be generated by adjusting the angle of the thrust device (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) without using a technology such as using a rotary propeller method like a conventional helicopter or using a turbojet engine. In addition, one embodiment of the present invention has a structure that can perform both vertical takeoff and landing and horizontal flight, and has a sturdy structure for stable flight.

The first-first thrust device (130-1), the first-second thrust device (130-2), the second-first thrust device (160-1), and the second-second thrust device (160-2) are composed of propellers and propulsion motors that drive the propellers. The first-first thrust device (130-1) and the first-second thrust device (130-2) become front thrust devices, and the second-first thrust device (160-1) and the second-second thrust device (160-2) become rear thrust devices.

The first and second fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) can be detachably assembled with the aircraft fuselage (110). Of course, a bolting method, an adhesive method, etc. can be used.

The materials for the first and second fixed wings (120-1, 120-2), the aircraft fuselage (110), and the horizontal stabilizer (170) may include carbon, GF (Glass Fiber) plastic, plastic, etc. In addition, the materials for the links (141-1 to 141-4, 142-1 to 142-4) may include engineering plastic, aluminum, carbon, aluminum alloy, etc.

When the drone takes off and lands, the driving arm (150) is used to push the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) toward the 1-3 vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3) as much as possible so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone becomes close to the vertical with respect to the ground.

This allows the thrust generated by the thrust device to be focused on the rise of the aircraft fuselage (110), i.e., on the rise of the drone.

Meanwhile, after the drone rises, the driving arm (150) is used to push the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) toward the 1-2 vertical link (141-2) and the 2-2 vertical link (142-2) as much as possible so that the thrust vector is aligned with the 1-1 and 2-2 fixed wings (120-1, 120-2).

Through this, the thrust generated by the thrust device can be used by the aircraft fuselage (110) for forward maneuver. At this time, the lift of the drone is obtained from the fixed wing (120-1, 120-2).

Fig. 2 is a circuit block diagram of the drone (100) illustrated in Fig. 1. Referring to Fig. 2, the drone (100) may be configured to include circuit block diagrams of a sensor system (210), a control unit (220), a motor (230), a driving unit (240), etc.

The sensor system (210) may include an altitude sensor that measures the altitude of the drone, a gyro motion stabilization sensor that measures the stable attitude of the drone and the acceleration of the drone, an optical camera that takes images, an infrared camera for thermal imaging, and an LRF (Laser Range Finder) that accurately measures the distance between the drone and a target.

The control unit (220) controls the components included in the drone (100) and performs the function of exchanging data and signals. To this end, the control unit (220) may be configured to include a microcomputer, a microprocessor, a memory, an electronic circuit, etc.

The memory may include at least one type of storage medium among a flash memory type, a hard disk type, a multimedia card micro type, memory of card type (e.g., Secure Digital (SD) or eXtreme Digital (XD) memory, etc.), a Random Access Memory (RAM), a Static Random Access Memory (SRAM), a Read Only Memory (ROM), an Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory (EEPROM), a Programmable Read Only Memory (PROM), a magnetic memory, a magnetic disk, and an optical disk.

The motor (230) is connected to a propeller (not shown) to enable the drone (100) to fly. Of course, the motor (230) is composed of multiple units, and a propeller is connected to each motor.

The driving unit (240) performs the function of moving the driving arm (150) left and right in the horizontal direction. To this end, one end of the driving arm (150) is rotatably connected to a shaft of a motor (not shown), and the other end is rotatably connected to the 1st-4th horizontal link (141-4) and the 2nd-4th horizontal link (142-4) as a joint.

Of course, it is also possible to use gears for such connections. The control unit (220), part of the sensor system (210), etc. may be configured inside the aircraft fuselage (110).

Of course, in addition, a communication device (not shown) is configured inside the aircraft fuselage (110) to communicate with the outside. The communication device mainly uses wireless communication to communicate. Wireless communication may use IrDA (Infrared Data) communication, ZigBee, Bluetooth, LiFi (Light Fidelity), WiFi (Wireless Fidelity), NFC (Near Field Control), etc.

Figure 3 is a conceptual diagram of the drone taking off as shown in Figure 1. Referring to Figure 3, when the drone takes off, the driving arm (150) is used to push the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) as much as possible toward the 1-3 vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3) so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone becomes close to the vertical with respect to the ground.

Accordingly, the first-third vertical link (141-3) and the second-third vertical link (142-3) can form a first constant angle (α°) with the first-first base link (141-1) and the second-first base link (142-1), respectively.

This allows the thrust generated by the thrust device to be focused on the rise of the aircraft fuselage (110), i.e., on the rise of the drone.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram of the drone during flight illustrated in FIG. 1. Referring to FIG. 4, after the drone rises, the driving arm (150) is used to push the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) toward the 1-2 vertical link (141-2) and the 2-2 vertical link (142-2) as much as possible so that the thrust vector is aligned with the 1-2 fixed wing and the 2-2 fixed wing (120-1, 120-2) for flight.

Accordingly, the first-third vertical link (141-3) and the second-third vertical link (142-3) can form a second constant angle (β°) with the first-first base link (141-1) and the second-first base link (142-1), respectively. In this case, the first constant angle (α°) > the second constant angle (β°).

In other words, the beta angle (β°) is approximately 90° based on cruising. This is because the cruising speed is fast and sufficient lift is obtained from the fixed wing. However, during takeoff and landing, the angle must be increased to more than 90° through thrust control. This makes takeoff and landing easier. This is because the speed must be reduced for vertical takeoff and landing, and if the speed is reduced, the lift obtained from the fixed wing decreases, so the angle must be increased to maintain lift only with the power of the propeller.

Through this, the thrust generated by the thrust device can be used by the aircraft fuselage (110) for forward maneuver. At this time, the lift of the drone is obtained from the fixed wing (120-1, 120-2).

FIG. 5 is a flow chart showing a drone control process according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG. 5, a pilot transmits a takeoff command to a drone (100) through a remote controller (not shown) (step S510). The remote controller (not shown) is a device that remotely operates and controls a drone and is composed of a joystick, buttons, switches, microphones, speakers, displays, etc. Of course, the command input can also be voice.

As the takeoff command is transmitted to the drone, the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) are moved as much as possible toward the 1-3 vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3), respectively, toward the rear of the drone by the driving arm (150) so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone becomes close to the vertical with respect to the ground (step S520). This is illustrated in FIG. 3. As FIG. 3 has been described previously, further description thereof will be omitted.

Thereafter, the pilot uses a remote controller to transmit a flight command to the drone (100) when the drone (100) rises to a certain altitude (step S530).

As the flight command is transmitted to the drone, after the drone ascends, the first-fourth horizontal link (141-4) and the second-fourth horizontal link (142-4) are moved as much as possible toward the front of the drone, toward the first-second vertical link (141-2) and the second-second vertical link (142-2), respectively, by the driving arm (150) so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone is aligned with the first and second fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) (step S540).

That is, when the drone (100) takes off, the thrust vector is close to vertical, and when cruising, the thrust vector is close to horizontal to increase flight speed and flight time.

In detail, one embodiment of the present invention is to maximize the utilization rate of thrust according to the purpose during takeoff, landing, and cruising by changing the thrust vector. To this end, the thrust vector for takeoff and landing of the drone is controlled to be perpendicular to the ground, and the thrust vector is controlled to be parallel to the chord line of the fixed wing when cruising. The chord line refers to an imaginary straight line connecting the leading edge of the wing and the trailing edge of the wing.

In Fig. 5, the case where the drone receives a takeoff command from a remote controller is described, but even in the case of a landing command, steps S510 to S540 may be changed and applied. In detail, when landing, the 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4 horizontal link (142-4) are moved as much as possible toward the 1-2 vertical link (141-2) and the 2-2 vertical link (142-2), respectively, in front of the drone by the driving arm (150) so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone in the flight state becomes close to the vertical with respect to the ground.

Thereafter, the 1-4th horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4th horizontal link (142-4) are moved toward the rear of the drone, toward the 1-3rd vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3rd vertical link (142-3), respectively, so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone as a vector is parallel to the 1st fixed wing and the 2nd fixed wing (120-1, 120-2).

In addition, the steps of the method or algorithm described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented in the form of program instructions that can be executed by various computer means, such as a microprocessor, a processor, a CPU (Central Processing Unit), and the like, and recorded on a computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium may include program (instruction) codes, data files, data structures, etc., alone or in combination.

The program (command) code recorded on the above medium may be specially designed and configured for the present invention, or may be known and available to those skilled in the art of computer software. Examples of the computer-readable recording medium may include magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tapes, optical media such as CD-ROMs, DVDs, and Blu-rays, and semiconductor memory devices specially configured to store and execute program (command) codes such as ROMs (Read Only Memory), RAMs (Random Access Memory), and flash memories.

Here, examples of program (instruction) code include not only machine language codes such as those generated by a compiler, but also high-level language codes that can be executed by a computer using an interpreter, etc. The above-mentioned hardware device can be configured to operate as one or more software modules to perform the operations of the present invention, and vice versa.

100: Drone
101: Joint 102: Receptacle
110: Airplane fuselage
120-1,120-2: 1st and 2nd fixed wing
130-1,130-2: No. 1-1 and No. 1-2 thrust devices
141,142: First and second link joints
141-1: 1st-1st base link 141-2: 1st-2nd vertical link
141-3: 1-3rd vertical link 141-4: 1-4th horizontal link
142-1: 2-1st base link 142-2: 2-2nd vertical link
142-3: 2-3rd vertical link 142-4: 2-4th horizontal link
150: Drive arm
160-1,160-2: 2-1 and 2-2 thrust units
170: Horizontal stabilizer 210: Sensor system
220: Control unit 230: Motor
240: Drive Unit

Claims (15)

Airplane fuselage (110);
A pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) formed horizontally on both sides of the aircraft fuselage (110) in the transverse direction;
Four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) arranged at the front and rear ends of a pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) and changing the thrust vector according to the thrust vector control; and
It includes a horizontal fin (170) that is positioned at the rear of the above-mentioned aircraft fuselage (110) and rotates up and down;
It includes a first link and a second link joint (141, 142) for adjusting the angle of the four above thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2);
The above first link joint (141) is located on the first fixed wing (120-1) among the pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) at a certain interval from the outer surface of the aircraft fuselage (110).
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that the second link joint (142) is positioned on the second fixed wing (120-2) among the pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) at a certain interval from the outer surface of the aircraft fuselage (110).
delete delete In the first paragraph,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that the first link joint (141) and the second link joint (142) are in the form of a four-section link.
In paragraph 4,
The above first link joint (141) is
A first-first base link (141-1) fixedly connected to the first fixed wing (120-1);
A 1-2 vertical link (141-2) rotatably connected to one end of the above 1-1 base link (141-1) and to which the 1-1 thrust device (130-1) of the four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) is fixedly connected;
A 1-3 vertical link (141-3) rotatably connected to the other end of the above 1-1 base link (141-1) and to which the 2-1 thrust device (160-1) of the four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) is fixedly connected; and
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized by including a 1-4 horizontal link (141-4) rotatably connected to the 1-2 vertical link (141-2) and the 1-3 vertical link (141-3).
In paragraph 5,
The above second link joint (142) is
A second-first base link (142-1) fixedly connected to the second fixed wing (120-2);
A 2-2 vertical link (142-2) rotatably connected to one end of the above 2-1 base link (142-1) and to which the 1-2 thrust device (130-2) of the four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) is fixedly connected;
A 2-3 vertical link (142-3) rotatably connected to the other end of the above 2-1 base link (142-1) and to which the 2-2 thrust device (160-2) among the four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) is fixedly connected; and
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized by including a 2-4 horizontal link (141-4) rotatably connected to the 2-2 vertical link (142-2) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3).
In paragraph 6,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that the first-third vertical link (141-3) and the second-third vertical link (142-3) have an inverted “ㄷ” shape that widens toward the outside.
In paragraph 6,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that the horizontal fin (170) is fixedly connected to the upper portion between the 1st-3rd vertical link (141-3) and the 2nd-3rd vertical link (142-3).
In paragraph 6,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that the 1st-4th horizontal link (141-4) and the 2nd-4th horizontal link (142-4) each have a drive arm (150) jointly connected for horizontal movement.
In Article 9,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that when the drone takes off and lands, the 1-4th horizontal link (141-4) and the 2-4th horizontal link (142-4) are moved by the driving arm (150) toward the 1-3rd vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3rd vertical link (142-3) respectively, which are toward the rear of the drone, or toward the 1-2nd vertical link (141-2) and the 2-2nd vertical link (142-2) respectively, which are toward the front of the drone, so that the thrust vector representing the propulsion force of the drone becomes close to the ground and vertical.
In Article 10,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that when the drone flies after ascending, the thrust vector representing the propulsive force of the drone as a vector is parallel to the first fixed wing and the second fixed wing (120-1, 120-2), and the first-fourth horizontal link (141-4) and the second-fourth horizontal link (142-4) are moved toward the first-second vertical link (141-2) and the second-second vertical link (142-2), respectively, by the driving arm (150).
In Article 11,
When the drone takes off, the first-third vertical link (141-3) and the second-third vertical link (142-3) form a first constant angle (α°) with the first-first base link (141-1) and the second-first base link (142-1), respectively.
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that when the drone is flying after ascending, the first-third vertical link (141-3) and the second-third vertical link (142-3) form a second constant angle (β°) with the first-first base link (141-1) and the second-first base link (142-1), respectively.
In Article 12,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that the first constant angle (α°) is greater than the second constant angle (β°).
In paragraph 6,
A drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that a receiving portion (102) is formed at both ends of the 1-1 base link (141-1) and the 2-1 base link (142-1), and the receiving portion (102) has a “⊂” shape to limit the rotation angle of the 1-3 vertical link (141-3) and the 2-3 vertical link (142-3).
(a) a step in which the drone (100) receives one of a takeoff command, a landing command, and a flight command; and
(b) a step of changing the thrust vector according to thrust vector control based on one of the takeoff command, landing command and flight command;
The above drone,
Airplane fuselage (110);
A pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) formed horizontally on both sides of the aircraft fuselage (110) in the transverse direction;
Four thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2) arranged at the front and rear ends of a pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) and changing the thrust vector according to the thrust vector control; and
It includes a horizontal fin (170) that is positioned at the rear of the above-mentioned aircraft fuselage (110) and rotates up and down.
It includes a first link and a second link joint (141, 142) for adjusting the angle of the four above thrust devices (130-1, 130-2, 160-1, 160-2);
The above first link joint (141) is located on the first fixed wing (120-1) among the pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) at a certain interval from the outer surface of the aircraft fuselage (110).
A method for controlling a drone capable of thrust vector control, characterized in that the second link joint (142) is positioned on the second fixed wing (120-2) among a pair of fixed wings (120-1, 120-2) at a constant interval from the outer surface of the aircraft fuselage (110).