Equipment capable of reproducing real operational meteorological environment for safety evaluation testing of advanced unmanned aerial vehicle

Abstract

The present invention relates to equipment that can realistically reproduce various types of airflow occurring in environments such as an urban area with tall buildings or regions with mountains and valleys, thereby enabling verification of the flight safety of a multicopter-type drone. The present invention comprises: a housing that provides a tunnel-shaped test space in which a plurality of blowers, together with controllers, are installed along the longitudinal direction of both sidewalls of the interior, the ceiling, and the floor, to generate airflows such as crosswinds, updrafts, downdrafts, and vortices; and an integrated control unit that selectively or simultaneously controls some or all of the plurality of controllers installed in the housing so as to form airflows in pattern corresponding to user input or settings.

Description

Equipment capable of reproducing actual operational meteorological environments for safety evaluation testing of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles

[0001] The present invention relates to equipment capable of reproducing an actual operational meteorological environment for safety evaluation tests of unmanned aerial vehicles, and more specifically, to equipment capable of verifying the flight safety of a multicopter drone by realistically reproducing various types of air currents that can occur in an urban area with many tall buildings or an environment with mountains and valleys.

[0002]

[0003] In general, in large cities like Seoul in Korea where overpopulation is a problem, severe traffic congestion and parking difficulties are becoming major problems, but conventional methods such as road expansion and expansion of public transportation routes are no longer effective.

[0004] Accordingly, Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), a concept that includes Urban Air Mobility (UAM), which combines the concept of a taxi with multicopter drones, is attracting attention as a new alternative to solve the problem of traffic congestion, and it is expected that commercialization will be possible in the near future as related technologies continue to develop.

[0005] If the commercialization of future air mobility becomes a reality and public usage increases, it could significantly alleviate the serious traffic congestion problem occurring in major cities.

[0006] However, in urban areas with many tall buildings, gusts of wind or shear winds can occur from various directions, which can reduce the flight safety of multicopter drones. Therefore, it is essential to verify flight safety in an actual urban operating environment before commercialization.

[0007] Furthermore, in future air mobility, the operational range of multicopter drones is not limited to urban areas, so it is essential to demonstrate flight safety in non-urban environments such as mountains and valleys.

[0008] Accordingly, a device or system for testing is required, and in this regard, inventions such as “Drone wind tunnel experimental device” in Korean Patent Registration No. 10-2184199 and “Wind generating means and wind test equipment including wind generating means” in Korean Publication No. 10-2023-0011494 have been proposed and published.

[0009] That is, the “Drone Wind Tunnel Experimental Device” of the above-mentioned Republic of Korea Patent Publication No. 10-2184199 proposes an invention regarding a device that can detect and analyze the location of a drone in real time in a situation where multiple wind generators blow air under various conditions, thereby evaluating the overall flight safety of the drone.

[0010] In addition, the invention of the “Wind generating means and wind test equipment including wind generating means” of the above-mentioned Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2591946 proposes an invention regarding a device that can test the aerodynamic performance of an aerial vehicle by generating wind such as profiled gusts and turbulence using a plurality of wind generating units that can be arranged in a curved shape.

[0011] However, among the above-mentioned prior inventions, the invention of Patent Publication No. 10-2184199 only presents a device for blowing air and does not present a detailed configuration or method for reproducing various types of airflow that may occur in an actual operational weather environment, so it has limitations that make high-level testing virtually impossible.

[0012] In addition, the invention of Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2591946 proposes a superior form of ventilation equipment than before, but it has the limitation of not presenting any solution to the problems expected to occur during the actual ventilation process.

[0013] That is, when multiple blowing means are installed in close contact with each other and blow in the same direction, a collision between air currents may occur, which may result in a decrease in wind speed or the generation of vortices or turbulence of a different form than intended. However, the above-mentioned prior art does not present any solution to this problem.

[0014] As a result, when using the above-mentioned prior inventions, the problem of reduced reliability of test results arises, and therefore, it can be said that there is a need for the development of equipment or systems capable of testing flight safety at a high level in preparation for the commercialization of future air mobility, including urban air mobility.

[0015]

[0016] The present invention is not applicable to the above-mentioned prior inventions because they do not present detailed configurations or methods for reproducing various types of airflow that may occur in an actual urban operating environment, or do not present solutions to problems expected to occur during the ventilation process.

[0017] The purpose is to propose equipment that can test the flight safety of drones at a high level in preparation for the commercialization of future air mobility, including urban air mobility.

[0018]

[0019] The present invention aims to achieve the above-mentioned purpose,

[0020] The present invention provides equipment capable of reproducing an actual operational meteorological environment for safety evaluation tests of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles, comprising: a housing having a plurality of blowers installed along the longitudinal direction of both sides of the interior, the ceiling, and the floor, together with a controller, to provide a tunnel-shaped test space in which airflow is formed; and an integrated control unit that selectively controls some of the plurality of controllers installed in the housing or simultaneously controls all of them, thereby forming an airflow in a shape according to user input or settings.

[0021] At this time, the present invention is characterized in that it further includes a blower pipe that is installed one by one in a manner of being screw-fastened to a screw groove formed on the front surface of the blower in a state in which the diameter decreases from one end where an inlet is formed and a certain range of screw threads are formed on the outer periphery to the other end where an outlet is formed.

[0022] In addition, the present invention is characterized in that it further comprises an information generation unit based on video shooting that generates real-time video information by tracking and shooting a drone flying in the test space with a camera, and records the gimbal adjustment value for shooting in real time to generate real-time gimbal information; an information analysis unit that synthesizes characteristic information on a specific air current formed according to a user input or setting, the video information generated by the information generation unit while the air current is formed, and the gimbal information to analyze the flight safety of the drone in an actual operating environment and generate result information; and a visualization processing unit that visualizes the result information so that it can be displayed on an external display device.

[0023]

[0024] The equipment capable of reproducing the actual operational meteorological environment for safety evaluation testing of the advanced unmanned aerial vehicle according to the present invention is:

[0025] It is configured to efficiently and without problems reproduce various forms of airflow that can occur in a city center with many tall buildings in a test space of a certain size, and it is configured to comprehensively analyze by obtaining image information and gimbal information at each stage of the formation of various forms of airflow.

[0026] As a result, the effect is achieved of ensuring sufficient reliability and confirming the drone's flight safety.

[0027]

[0028] Figures 1a and 1b are exemplary views showing a drone entering the interior of a housing constituting the present invention.

[0029] Figure 2 is an example diagram showing a state in which a blower pipe is installed in a plurality of blowers installed in the housing.

[0030] Figure 3 is an example drawing showing how to install a blower pipe in a blower.

[0031] Figure 4 is an example diagram showing the state of equipment for reproducing a rainy situation in the housing.

[0032] Figure 5 is a configuration diagram of the present invention for controlling the operation of a blower.

[0033] Figure 6 is an example diagram showing how to form a vortex in a test space by adjusting the output of a plurality of blowers installed in the housing.

[0034] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram showing an additional configuration of the present invention.

[0035] Figure 8 is an example diagram showing the risk status of a drone.

[0036]

[0037] The equipment capable of reproducing the actual operational meteorological environment for safety evaluation testing of the advanced unmanned aerial vehicle according to the present invention is:

[0038] It is characterized by comprising: a housing having a plurality of blowers installed along the longitudinal direction on both sides of the interior, the ceiling, and the floor, together with a controller, to provide a tunnel-shaped test space in which airflow is formed; and an integrated control unit that selectively controls some of the plurality of controllers installed in the housing or simultaneously controls all of them, thereby forming an airflow in a shape according to user input or settings.

[0039]

[0040] The present invention relates to equipment capable of reproducing an actual operational meteorological environment for safety evaluation tests of unmanned aerial vehicles.

[0041] It is characterized by comprising a housing (100) in which a plurality of blowers (101) are installed along the longitudinal direction on both sides of the interior, the ceiling, and the floor together with a controller (102) to provide a tunnel-shaped test space in which airflow is formed; and an integrated control unit (110) that selectively controls some of the plurality of controllers (102) installed in the housing (100) or simultaneously controls all of them to form an airflow in a shape according to a user input or setting.

[0042]

[0043] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0044] First, as shown in FIGS. 1a and 1b, the housing (100) is a structure that forms a tunnel-shaped test space inside for drones used in urban air mobility (UAM).

[0045] That is, the housing (100) is configured in a form having walls, a ceiling, and a floor, and can be installed in a fixed form at a designated location, but can also be configured in an assembled form in a modular form that can be separated into several parts.

[0046] Accordingly, when the housing (100) is assembled, it can be transported to another location, installed, and dismantled more easily than when it is fixed, and even when installed in a completely open outdoor space, it can minimize external influences due to weather conditions.

[0047] At this time, since the housing (100) is intended to test the flight safety of a multicopter drone used for urban air mobility, as shown in Fig. 1a, a number of blowers (101) must be installed on both sides, the ceiling, and the floor of the interior so that various types of actual airflow phenomena can be reproduced inside.

[0048] That is, on both sides of the inside of the housing (100), a plurality of blowers (101) must be installed in layers in rows and columns to reproduce horizontal airflow, and on the ceiling and floor, a plurality of blowers (101) must be installed in rows and columns to reproduce vertical airflow.

[0049] At this time, it can be said that the most basic configuration is to have all blowers (101) as the same product or as products with the same output performance.

[0050] However, if necessary, the housing (100) may be divided into several zones and each zone may be equipped with a product having a different output performance, or the two sides, ceiling, and floor may be distinguished and equipped with products having different output performances.

[0051] This is to diversify the testing method targeting drones, but as the size of the housing (100) becomes smaller, it may become meaningless or, in some cases, may have an adverse effect. Therefore, the installation of the blower (101) in the above-described manner is only meaningful in a housing (100) of a certain size or larger.

[0052] However, since the ends on both sides based on the longitudinal direction of the housing (100) are open, a blower (101) cannot be installed in that part, and by using this as an entrance and exit at the same time, it is possible to enable the drone to enter and exit the test space formed inside the housing (100) as shown in FIG. 1b.

[0053] In addition, a plurality of controllers (102) matching one-to-one or many-to-one to all blowers (101) must be installed, thereby enabling external control of individual or group control of all blowers (101) installed in the housing (100).

[0054] For example, a plurality of blowers (101) installed in the housing (100) can be divided into a first blower unit and a second blower unit installed on each of the two sides inside, a third blower unit installed on the ceiling, and a fourth blower unit installed on the floor, and first to fourth controllers capable of controlling each blower unit can be provided.

[0055] Of course, since there is no limitation to the above-described method, it can be said that the relationship between the plurality of blowers and the plurality of controllers (102) may be configured in a manner different from the above-described method.

[0056] Another essential requirement is that, considering that the span of drones used for urban air mobility is formed in the range of about 6 to 10 m and the height is formed in the range of about 4.5 to 7.5 m, the housing (100) must be able to form a test space inside that is formed with a width of 20 m or more and a height of 15 m or more.

[0057] The standard of the above specifications is to minimize the influence of the down wash phenomenon that occurs when multiple rotors equipped on a drone rotate on the drone's flight by forming the span-to-tunnel width ratio at a level of 0.3 or less, so it is desirable to be able to satisfy the standard.

[0058] And the length of the housing (100) should be formed to be 20 m or more in consideration of the width, and it is preferable to form it to be more than twice as long as the width so that a tunnel-shaped test space can be formed.

[0059] Accordingly, the effect of being able to conduct a test for flight safety while the drone is in cruising flight inside the housing (100) in a stable and efficient manner is generated.

[0060]

[0061] Meanwhile, as illustrated in FIG. 2, each blower (101) installed in the housing (100) may be provided with a blower pipe (103) configured in a shape in which the inner diameter decreases from one end where the inlet is formed to the other end where the outlet is formed.

[0062] At this time, as shown in FIG. 3, the blower pipe (103) may be configured in a shape in which a certain range of screw threads are formed on the outer periphery of one end where the inlet is formed, and a screw groove corresponding to the screw threads of the blower pipe (103) may be formed on the front surface of the blower (101), thereby enabling coupling between them in a screw-fastening manner.

[0063] In addition, the diameter of the exhaust port constituting the above-mentioned blower pipe (103) can be made significantly shorter by a certain percentage or more than the diameter of the blower fan constituting the blower (101), so that blowing can occur within a limited range.

[0064] This is because, when a number of blowers (101) are installed adjacent to each other and aligned in rows and columns to blow air in the same direction, a collision may occur between the air currents formed by each blower (101), which may result in a decrease in wind speed or the generation of turbulence of a different form than intended.

[0065] Accordingly, since the blower pipe (103) is installed to blow air in a limited range, the influence between the air currents formed by adjacent blowers (101) is minimized, thereby solving problems such as a decrease in wind speed or the occurrence of turbulence of a different form than intended.

[0066] In addition, the blower pipe (103) may also be configured in a form in which a contraction section in which the internal diameter decreases and an expansion section in which the internal diameter expands are continuously formed along the length direction.

[0067] And in this case, the internal passage of the blower pipe (103) is configured asymmetrically so that the length of the contraction section is formed to be more than twice as long as the length of the diffusion section, so that the shrinkage amount per unit area of ​​the volume contraction along the length direction can be formed to be greater than the diffusion amount per unit area of ​​the volume diffusion.

[0068] According to this configuration, the speed of the air flow flowing along the internal passage of the blower pipe (103) increases rapidly in the contraction section, and as a result, the temperature of the gas constituting the air flow may drop rapidly.

[0069] That is, since it is possible to form an air current at a lower temperature than when blowing using the blower (101) alone, it is possible to actually reproduce the cold air current at a high altitude where the drone actually flies without a cooling device, so that it is possible to sufficiently test the flight safety of the drone at low temperatures where battery performance deteriorates.

[0070] In addition, in the case where a cooling device is additionally installed in the housing (100), the efficiency of cooling by the cooling device can be improved, thereby enabling testing of the drone's flight safety under more adverse conditions.

[0071] In addition, when a plurality of spray nozzles (104) are installed on the ceiling of the housing (100), it becomes possible to conduct a test of flight safety in rainy conditions targeting drones.

[0072] That is, as shown in FIG. 4, a plurality of spray nozzles (104) can be installed together with a supply pipe on the ceiling of the housing (100), and a supply pump (105) that enables water to be supplied to the ceiling and an automatic control valve (106) for water supply control can be installed together with a supply pipe on the inside or outside of the housing (100).

[0073] And in this case, a flow meter (107) and a pressure gauge (108) can be additionally installed to enable external confirmation of the transmitted state.

[0074] In addition, a water storage tank (200) for storing water can be installed at the bottom of the housing (100) to support the housing (100) while enabling water transmission for reproduction of rainy weather conditions and recovery for reuse.

[0075] At this time, as shown in FIG. 4, when the housing (100) is installed in a form supported on a reservoir (200), a number of drain holes are formed on the bottom of the housing (100), and a number of drain pipes (201) connected to the drain holes are installed downward so that the water used to reproduce a rainy weather situation can be supplied back to the reservoir (200) and reused.

[0076]

[0077] In addition, the integrated control unit (110) is a control device for forming airflow inside the housing (100), and as shown in FIG. 5, it selectively controls some of the multiple controllers (102) installed in the housing (100) or controls all of them simultaneously, so that an airflow of a shape according to user input or settings can be formed.

[0078] For this purpose, the integrated control unit (110) may be configured as a computer device or mobile device having a dedicated app or program installed and having its own or separate input device.

[0079] At this time, since the control signal generated by the integrated control unit (110) is based on a user input occurring in real time or a preset setting value, the user of the present invention can input a desired type of airflow using an input device or cause the airflow to be formed automatically.

[0080] In addition, the integrated control unit (110) can be used to control the speed of the airflow, control the formation of an airflow of a different shape than before, and control the formation of the airflow to be stopped.

[0081] Additionally, the user of the present invention can control airflows in different directions to be formed simultaneously, and can control the speed of different airflows formed simultaneously or individually.

[0082] That is, as illustrated in Fig. 6, by installing multiple blowers (101) in multiple layers on both sides of the inside of the housing (100), the output of each layer is controlled differently, and the output of the facing layers is also controlled differently, so that a vortex can be formed inside the test space.

[0083] Additionally, in the case where a cooling device is installed in the housing (100), the temperature inside the test space can be controlled using the integrated control unit (110).

[0084] And, when a plurality of spray nozzles (104) are installed on the ceiling of the housing (100), and a supply pump (105) for supplying water to the ceiling and an automatic control valve (106) for controlling the supply are installed together with a supply pipe inside or outside the housing (100), the opening and closing of the automatic control valve (106) can be controlled to reproduce a rainy situation inside the test space.

[0085] In this way, since various situations can be reproduced singly or in combination in the test space inside the housing (100), the effect of enabling testing of flight safety under various conditions is generated.

[0086] In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the present invention is characterized in that it further includes an image shooting-based information generation unit (120) that generates real-time image information by tracking and shooting a drone flying in the test space, and records the adjustment value of a gimbal (122) for shooting in real time to generate real-time gimbal information.

[0087] That is, the information generation unit (120) is a device that generates image information and gimbal information that enable the derivation of test results for the flight safety of a drone, and may be configured to include a camera (121) and a gimbal (122) for this purpose.

[0088] At this time, it is desirable to use a product that is capable of capturing high-quality images as well as having a subject tracking function as the camera (121), and multiple cameras are installed inside the housing (100) together with other devices for storing and transmitting captured images or transmitting them simultaneously with shooting, to capture images from various directions.

[0089] In addition, it is preferable that the gimbal (122) uses a three-axis product, and can be configured to include devices such as an IMU sensor, a microcontroller, a motor, and a motor driver inside.

[0090] Accordingly, tracking and shooting of a drone is possible through the combination of the camera (121) and the gimbal (122), and as a result, while image information is generated, the adjustment value of the gimbal (122) during the shooting process can be confirmed in real time, and gimbal information can be generated.

[0091] In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the present invention is characterized in that it further includes an information analysis unit (130) that analyzes the flight safety of a drone in an actual operating environment and generates result information by synthesizing characteristic information about a specific airflow formed according to user input or settings, image information generated by the information generation unit (120) while the airflow is formed, and gimbal information.

[0092] That is, the information analysis unit (130) is a device that analyzes the drone's flight posture using the image information and gimbal information provided by the information generation unit (120), and reflects characteristic information during the analysis process so that the drone's flight safety in specific air currents and wind speeds can be individually confirmed.

[0093] For example, the information analysis unit (130) can generate result information in a situation where the first blower blows alone at a wind speed of 5 m / s, can generate result information in a situation where the first blower blows alone at a wind speed of 6 m / s, and can generate result information in this manner until a situation where the blower blows at the maximum wind speed is reached.

[0094] In addition, in the same manner as above, a plurality of result information can be generated in a situation where the second blower, the third blower, and the fourth blower blow alone, and a plurality of result information can be generated in a situation where two or more blowers blow simultaneously.

[0095] Additionally, the information analysis unit (130) may be configured to generate a warning signal and transmit it to the integrated control unit (110) when there is a concern that the drone may crash during the process of analyzing the flight safety of the drone.

[0096] That is, the information analysis unit (130) can quantify or grade the flight safety of the drone analyzed based on the flight attitude of the drone confirmed using image information and the adjustment value of the gimbal (122) confirmed using gimbal information, and when a preset value or grade is reached, generate a warning signal for the purpose of preventing the drone from crashing and transmit it to the integrated control unit (110).

[0097] For example, the state of a drone flying horizontally can be expressed numerically, the state of being tilted can be expressed numerically according to the degree, and the state of being shaken forward and backward or left and right can be expressed numerically according to the degree.

[0098] Accordingly, the information analysis unit (130) can classify the current state of the drone into a normal state, a caution state, a dangerous state, etc., based on a numerical value indicating the current flight safety, and can subdivide the dangerous state into several stages as needed, and as shown in FIG. 8, can generate a warning signal and transmit it to the integrated control unit (110) as soon as the dangerous state is reached or a specific stage is reached.

[0099] In this regard, the integrated control unit (110) may be configured to generate a control signal targeting the controller (102) immediately upon receiving a warning signal transmitted by the information analysis unit (130), and transmit the generated control signal to stop the airflow inside the housing (100), thereby stabilizing the flight state of the drone.

[0100] In addition, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the present invention is characterized in that it further includes a visualization processing unit (140) that visualizes the result information generated by the information analysis unit (130) and enables it to be displayed on an external display device, thereby enabling the user to confirm the flight safety of the drone and utilize the data.

[0101]

[0102] The embodiments introduced above are provided as examples so that the technical idea of ​​the present invention can be sufficiently conveyed to a person having ordinary skill in the art to which the present invention pertains, and the present invention is not limited to the embodiments described above and may be embodied in other forms.

[0103] In order to clearly explain the present invention, parts that are not related to the explanation are omitted from the drawings, and in the drawings, the width, length, thickness, etc. of components may be expressed in an exaggerated or reduced form for convenience.

[0104] Additionally, identical reference numbers throughout the specification represent identical components.

[0105]

[0106] The equipment capable of reproducing the actual operational meteorological environment for safety evaluation testing of the advanced unmanned aerial vehicle according to the present invention is:

[0107] It is configured to efficiently and without problems reproduce various types of airflow that can occur in urban areas with many tall buildings in a test space of a certain size, and it is configured to comprehensively analyze by securing image information and gimbal information for each process in which various types of airflow are formed, so it has sufficient reliability and has the effect of confirming the flight safety of the drone, so it has sufficient potential for industrial use.

Claims

1. A housing (100) having a plurality of blowers (101) installed along the length direction on both sides of the interior, the ceiling, and the floor, together with a controller (102), to provide a tunnel-shaped test space where airflow is formed; and, Equipment capable of reproducing an actual operational weather environment for safety evaluation testing of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles, characterized in that it comprises an integrated control unit (110) that selectively controls some of a plurality of controllers (102) installed in the housing (100) or controls all of them simultaneously to form an airflow in a shape according to user input or settings; 2. In paragraph 1, In a state where the diameter decreases from one end where an inlet is formed and a certain range of screw threads are formed on the outer periphery to the other end where an outlet is formed, Equipment capable of reproducing an actual operational weather environment for safety evaluation tests of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles, characterized in that it further comprises blower pipes (103) that are installed one by one in a manner of being screw-fastened to screw grooves formed on the front surface of the blower (101).

3. In paragraph 1, A device capable of reproducing an actual operational weather environment for safety evaluation tests of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles, characterized in that a plurality of blowers (101) are installed in multiple layers on both sides of the inside of the housing (100), and the output of each layer is controlled differently while the output of the facing layers is also controlled differently, thereby forming a whirlwind inside the test space.

4. In paragraph 1, An information generation unit (120) based on video shooting that generates real-time video information by tracking and shooting a drone flying in the above test space with a camera (121) and records the adjustment values ​​of a gimbal (122) for shooting in real time to generate real-time gimbal information; An information analysis unit (130) that analyzes the flight safety of a drone in an actual operating environment and generates result information by synthesizing characteristic information about a specific airflow formed according to user input or settings, image information generated by the information generation unit (120) while the airflow is being formed, and gimbal information; and, Equipment capable of reproducing an actual operational weather environment for safety evaluation tests of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles, characterized in that it further comprises a visualization processing unit (140) for visualizing the result information so that it can be displayed on an external display device; 5. In paragraph 4, The above information analysis unit (130) An equipment capable of reproducing an actual operational weather environment for safety evaluation testing of advanced unmanned aerial vehicles, characterized in that it is configured to quantify or grade the flight safety of a drone analyzed using video information and gimbal information, and generate a warning signal for the purpose of preventing a drone from crashing and transmit it to the integrated control unit (110) when a preset value or grade is reached.

Images