A drone recovery device

Abstract

The present invention discloses a drone recovery device, comprising a telescopic arm assembly, a folding arm assembly, a crossbar assembly, a turntable, a slewing mechanism, a base and a recovery rope assembly; the turntable is arranged on the base through the slewing mechanism; the rear end of the crossbar assembly is connected to the turntable, the rear end of the telescopic arm assembly is connected to the turntable, and the front end of the telescopic arm assembly is connected to the rear end of the folding arm assembly; the turntable, the telescopic arm assembly, the folding arm assembly, and the crossbar assembly form a C-shaped structure accommodating space, and the upper and lower notches of the C-shaped structure are connected by the recovery rope assembly, thereby forming a complete drone collision rope recovery space. The device occupies a small space in the retracted state and is convenient to transport. It can be carried on a vehicle, can be loaded on a trailer and towed away, can also be used on a ship, and can also be loaded in a 20-foot container for transportation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), and in particular to a UAV recovery device. Background Art

[0002] The drone recovery methods include landing gear roll landing, parachute recovery, interception net recovery, airbag recovery, air cushion recovery, aerial recovery, vertical landing, etc.

[0003] The requirements for the runway for landing with landing gear are not as high as those for manned aircraft. Some landing gear designs are more fragile, and they are damaged and absorb energy when they hit the ground. Some are equipped with tail hooks that can hook the arresting rope to slow down as quickly as possible.

[0004] Parachute recovery: When recovering a large UAV in a small area, shock-absorbing devices, air bags, shock-absorbing structures, etc. need to be installed on the contact parts of the fuselage, and the contact parts should be kept as far away from the equipment cabin as possible.

[0005] The interception net recovery is mainly aimed at small drones, and the overload when touching the net cannot exceed 6g.

[0006] The principle of air cushion recovery is similar to that of air cushion vehicles and hovercraft. The engine compresses air into the airbag, and the compressed air is ejected from the holes in the airbag to form a high-pressure air area - an air cushion - on the belly of the aircraft. Landing is not restricted by ground conditions, size, weight, and has a high recovery rate.

[0007] Aerial recovery is expensive, demanding, and risky, and is currently only used in the United States.

[0008] The principle of vertical recovery is the same as that of vertical launch.

[0009] The rope recovery method uses a rope hanging from a boom to capture the small hook on the wing tip of the drone for recovery.

[0010] Some in the industry use simple rope retraction devices, most of which require on-site assembly of the structure, while others use a fixed location as a foundation and fix the recovery device on it, etc. Although the principles of rope retraction are similar, the implementation is different. Summary of the invention

[0011] In view of the deficiencies in the prior art, the present invention provides a drone recovery device that is adaptable to various transport carriers, can be vehicle-mounted or ship-mounted, and can be transported in containers.

[0012] The present invention is implemented according to the following technical solutions:

[0013] A UAV recovery device comprises a telescopic arm assembly, a folding arm assembly, a crossbar assembly, a turntable, a slewing mechanism, a base and a recovery rope assembly; the turntable is arranged on the base through the slewing mechanism; the tail end of the crossbar assembly is connected to the turntable, the tail end of the telescopic arm assembly is connected to the turntable, and the front end of the telescopic arm assembly is connected to the tail end of the folding arm assembly; the turntable, the telescopic arm assembly, the folding arm assembly and the crossbar assembly form a C-shaped structure accommodating space, and the recovery rope assembly is used to connect the upper and lower notches of the C-shaped structure, thereby forming a complete UAV collision rope recovery space.

[0014] Furthermore, the telescopic arm assembly comprises a basic arm and a multi-section telescopic arm, the multi-section telescopic arm is sequentially installed in the basic arm, and the multi-section telescopic arm can be synchronously telescoped on the basic arm through the structural mode of a single-cylinder rope adding assembly.

[0015] Furthermore, the telescopic arm assembly is connected to the luffing cylinder I to pitch the telescopic arm assembly to a predetermined angle.

[0016] Furthermore, the folding arm assembly includes a folding arm I and a folding arm II; wherein the folding arm I is hinged to the front end of the telescopic arm assembly and forms an angle less than 180° with the telescopic arm assembly; the folding arm II is hinged to the folding arm I, and the angle between the two varies from 0 to 180°.

[0017] Furthermore, the folding arm assembly also includes a luffing cylinder II and a luffing cylinder III; one end of the luffing cylinder II is hinged to the folding arm I, the other end of the luffing cylinder II is hinged to the connecting rods I and II, and the connecting rod I is hinged to the front end of the telescopic arm assembly, and the connecting rod II is hinged to the folding arm I; the folding arm assembly is pitched to a predetermined angle by the luffing cylinder II; one end of the luffing cylinder III is hinged to the folding arm I, the other end of the luffing cylinder III is hinged to the connecting rods III and IV, and the connecting rod III is hinged to the folding arm I, and the connecting rod IV is hinged to the folding arm II; the folding arm II is swung to 180° by the luffing cylinder III.

[0018] Furthermore, after the folding arm II is unfolded, the freedom of one direction of the rotational orientation is limited by a mechanical limiter located at the hinge between the folding arm I and the folding arm II.

[0019] Furthermore, the oil supply and oil return of the luffing cylinder II and the luffing cylinder III are through a high-pressure hose reel, and the luffing cylinder II and the luffing cylinder III are each provided with an oil inlet and an oil return.

[0020] Furthermore, the cross bar assembly includes a cross bar basic arm, a cross bar telescopic arm I, a cross bar telescopic arm II, a brake motor and a rope assembly; the rope assembly includes a steel wire rope, a rope joint I and a rope joint II; the brake motor is fixed on the cross bar basic arm, and a roller is provided on the rotating shaft of the brake motor. The steel wire rope is wound around the roller for multiple turns and then comes out of the rope joint I and rope joint II that are displaced up and down; the rope joint I bypasses the fixed pulley installed on the cross bar basic arm and is connected to the tail of the cross bar telescopic arm I, and the rope joint II is connected to the head of the cross bar telescopic arm I.

[0021] Furthermore, a circle of threaded connection holes I is provided on the bottom surface of the base for fixing to a fixed surface through a plurality of bolts; when the UAV recovery device is in a retracted state, the front of the UAV recovery device is supported by a support frame fixed to the fixed surface.

[0022] Beneficial effects of the present invention:

[0023] 1) The single cylinder plus rope assembly structure can reduce the weight of the actuator, while achieving synchronous extension and retraction and improving the extension and retraction efficiency;

[0024] 2) The folding arm with hydraulic cylinder luffing is used to replace manual luffing, which reduces the operator's workload and enables convenient operation;

[0025] 3) The brake motor plus rope assembly structure is used to replace the oil cylinder plus rope assembly structure, which effectively reduces the cross section of the cross arm and thus reduces the weight;

[0026] 4) The telescopic length of the telescopic arm assembly is adjustable, the telescopic length of the crossbar is adjustable, and the amplitude angle of the folding arm assembly is adjustable, which meets the requirements of different models for recycling space;

[0027] 5) The overall modular design can adapt to various transport carriers, can be mounted on vehicles or ships, and can be transported in containers. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0028] Figure 1 This is a diagram of the unmanned aerial vehicle recovery device of the present invention in an expanded state;

[0029] Figure 1a for Figure 1 A-direction view;

[0030] Figure 2 This is a diagram of the retracted state of the drone recovery device of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 2a for Figure 2 B-direction view;

[0032] Figure 3 It is a layout diagram of the folding arm connection of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 4This is a diagram of the crossbar assembly of the present invention in a retracted state;

[0034] Figure 5 This is a diagram of the crossbar assembly of the present invention in an extended state;

[0035] Figure 6 It is a structural diagram of the crossbar assembly of the present invention.

[0036] In the figure: 1-telescopic arm assembly; 1-1-basic arm; 1-2-first telescopic arm; 1-3-second telescopic arm; 1-4-third telescopic arm; 2-folding arm assembly; 2-1-folding arm Ⅰ; 2-2-folding arm Ⅱ; 3-cross bar assembly; 3-1-cross bar basic arm; 3-2-cross bar telescopic arm Ⅰ; 3-3-cross bar telescopic arm Ⅱ; 4-turntable; 5-slewing mechanism; 6-base; 7-recovery rope assembly; 8-luffing cylinder Ⅰ ; 9-luffing cylinder Ⅱ; 10-luffing cylinder Ⅲ; 11-high-pressure hose reel; 12-connecting rod Ⅰ; 13-connecting rod Ⅱ; 14-connecting rod Ⅲ; 15-connecting rod Ⅳ; 16-mechanical limit; 17-threaded connection hole Ⅰ; 18-threaded connection hole Ⅱ; 19-brake motor; 20-rope assembly; 20-1 rope joint Ⅰ; 20-2 rope joint Ⅱ; 20-3 wire rope; 21-roller; 22-fixed pulley; 23-support frame. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0037] In order to make the purpose, technical scheme and advantages of the implementation of the present invention clearer, the technical scheme in the embodiment of the present invention will be described in more detail below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiment of the present invention. In the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements with the same or similar functions. The described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. The embodiments described below with reference to the drawings are exemplary and are intended to be used to explain the present invention, and should not be construed as limitations on the present invention. Based on the embodiments in the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without making creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention. The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings.

[0038] like Figure 1 , Figure 2 As shown, the present invention provides a drone recovery device, which adopts the form of first telescopic and then folding in terms of construction space. The telescopic arm is to construct the height direction of the recovery space, and the folding arm is to construct the rotation radius of the recovery space. The specific scheme is as follows:

[0039] A UAV recovery device comprises a telescopic arm assembly 1, a folding arm assembly 2, a crossbar assembly 3, a turntable 4, a slewing mechanism 5, a base 6 and a recovery rope assembly 7; the turntable 4 is arranged on the base 6 through the slewing mechanism 5; the rear end of the crossbar assembly 3 is connected to the turntable 4, the rear end of the telescopic arm assembly 1 is connected to the turntable 4, and the front end of the telescopic arm assembly 1 is connected to the rear end of the folding arm assembly 2; the turntable 4, the telescopic arm assembly 1, the folding arm assembly 2, and the crossbar assembly 3 form a C-shaped structure accommodating space, and the upper and lower gaps of the C-shaped structure are connected by the recovery rope assembly 7, thereby forming a complete UAV collision rope recovery space.

[0040] The following is a preferred embodiment of the telescopic arm assembly in the above embodiment:

[0041] The telescopic arm assembly includes a basic arm and three telescopic arms (i.e., the first telescopic arm 1-2, the second telescopic arm 1-3, and the third telescopic arm 1-4 in the figure). The three telescopic arms are sequentially installed in the basic arm 1-1, and the three telescopic arms are synchronously extended and retracted on the basic arm 1-1 through the structural mode of the single cylinder and rope assembly. The telescopic arm assembly 1 is connected to the variable amplitude oil cylinder Ⅰ8 to pitch the telescopic arm assembly 1 to a predetermined angle.

[0042] It should be noted that the structural mode of the above-mentioned single cylinder rope adding assembly is consistent with the principle of the telescopic arm of the existing crane, which will not be described in detail here. The telescopic length of the telescopic arm assembly varies accordingly according to different models (not limited to the above-mentioned three-section telescopic arm).

[0043] A preferred embodiment of the folding arm assembly in the above embodiment is given below:

[0044] like Figure 3 As shown, the folding arm assembly 2 includes a folding arm Ⅰ2-1 and a folding arm Ⅱ2-2; wherein, the folding arm Ⅰ2-1 is hinged to the front end of the telescopic arm assembly 1, and forms an angle less than 180° with the telescopic arm assembly 1; the folding arm Ⅱ2-2 is hinged to the folding arm Ⅰ2-1, and the angle between the two varies from 0 to 180°.

[0045] The folding arm assembly 2 also includes a luffing cylinder II9 and a luffing cylinder III10; one end of the luffing cylinder II9 is ​​hinged to the folding arm I2-1, and the other end of the luffing cylinder II9 is ​​hinged to the connecting rod I12 and the connecting rod II13, and the connecting rod I12 is hinged to the front end of the telescopic arm assembly 1, and the connecting rod II13 is hinged to the folding arm I2-1; the folding arm assembly 2 is pitched to a predetermined angle by the luffing cylinder II9; one end of the luffing cylinder III10 is hinged to the folding arm I2-1, and the other end of the luffing cylinder III10 is hinged to the connecting rod III14 and the connecting rod IV15, and the connecting rod III14 is hinged to the folding arm I2-1, and the connecting rod IV15 is hinged to the folding arm II2-2; the folding arm II2-2 is swung to 180° by the luffing cylinder III10.

[0046] After the folding arm II 2-2 is unfolded, the freedom of rotation in one direction is limited by the mechanical limiter 16 located at the hinge of the folding arm I 2-1 and the folding arm II 2-2. In addition, the rotation position is limited by the oil cylinder. Figure 3 As shown, the oil cylinder is under pressure but not tension, thereby effectively controlling the outer dimensions of the oil cylinder.

[0047] Further options:

[0048] The oil supply and oil return to the luffing cylinder II9 and the luffing cylinder III10 are provided by the high-pressure hose reel 11. This method replaces the traditional drag chain structure, and the overall appearance is simple and neat. Each luffing cylinder has one oil inlet and one oil return, so an 8-wire high-pressure hose reel 11 is used. The high-pressure hose reel 11 is fixed to the basic arm 1-1 of the telescopic arm assembly 1 (the outermost arm of the telescopic arm assembly 1 connected to the turntable 4 and the luffing cylinder I8), and the extended oil pipe is fixed to the third telescopic arm 1-4 (the innermost arm of the telescopic arm assembly).

[0049] The following is a preferred embodiment of the crossbar assembly in the above embodiment:

[0050] like Figure 4 , Figure 5 , Figure 6 As shown, the crossbar assembly 3 adopts a two-stage telescopic arm structure. A brake motor and a rope assembly are combined to replace the conventional mechanism of combining a cylinder and a rope assembly. This structure can reduce the cross section of the box, thereby effectively reducing the weight.

[0051] The brake motor 19 is fixed on the crossbar basic arm 3-1 and can rotate in both directions, driving the crossbar telescopic arm to extend or retract through the wire rope. Figure 4 , Figure 5 As shown. Based on different machine models, the telescopic length of the crossbar is matched accordingly through the corresponding program.

[0052] The rope assembly 20 on the crossbar assembly consists of a steel wire rope 20-3 and two rope ends. The rope assembly 20 is wound three times on the roller 21, and two rope ends are output which are displaced up and down. The rope joint Ⅰ20-1 passes through the fixed pulley 22 (the fixed pulley 22 is fixed on the crossbar basic arm 3-1) and is connected to the tail of the crossbar telescopic arm Ⅰ3-2, and the rope joint Ⅱ20-2 is connected to the head of the crossbar telescopic arm Ⅰ3-1.

[0053] When the brake motor 19 rotates clockwise, the brake motor 19 rotates clockwise with the roller 21, pulling the rope joint I 20-1 to move toward the brake motor 19, and the crossbar telescopic arm I 3-2 retracts. The crossbar telescopic arm II 3-2 retracts synchronously (the synchronous telescopic principle of the crossbar telescopic arm II 3-2 is the same as the principle of the existing crane telescopic arm, which will not be described in detail here).

[0054] When the brake motor 19 rotates counterclockwise, the brake motor 19 rotates counterclockwise with the roller 21, pulling the rope connector II 20-2 to move away from the brake motor 19, and the crossbar telescopic arm I 3-2 extends. The crossbar telescopic arm II 3-2 extends synchronously (the synchronous telescopic principle of the crossbar telescopic arm II is the same as the principle of the existing crane telescopic arm, which will not be described in detail here).

[0055] The bottom surface of the base 6 is provided with a circle of threaded connection holes Ⅰ17 for fixing to a fixed surface by multiple bolts; when the drone recovery device is in the retracted state, the front of the drone recovery device is supported by the support frame 23 fixed to the fixed surface. The bottom surface of the support frame 23 is provided with multiple threaded connection holes Ⅱ18 for fixing to a fixed surface by multiple bolts.

[0056] In summary, the variable-length oil cylinder Ⅰ8 pitches the telescopic arm assembly 1 to a certain angle, and the telescopic arm assembly 1 extends synchronously. According to different models, the telescopic length of the telescopic arm assembly 1 is adjustable. The variable-length oil cylinder Ⅱ9 pitches the folding arm assembly 2 to a certain angle, which can be adjusted according to different models. The variable-length oil cylinder Ⅲ10 swings the folding arm Ⅱ2-2 to 180 degrees, and the horizontal length of the upper end of the structure is the distance from the hanging rope point to the rotation center. The crossbar assembly 3 adopts the brake motor plus rope assembly mechanism to realize the two-stage telescopic extension of the crossbar. The advantage of this mechanism is that it occupies a small space, and the crossbar cross section is smaller than the cylinder plus rope assembly structure. The turntable 4, the telescopic arm assembly 1, the folding arm assembly 2, and the crossbar assembly 3 form an approximately C-shaped space. The upper and lower gaps of the C-shaped structure are connected by the recovery rope assembly 7, thereby forming a complete UAV collision rope recovery space. The device occupies a small space when retracted and is easy to transport. It can be mounted on a vehicle, towed on a trailer, used on a ship, or transported in a 20-foot container.

[0057] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solution of the present invention rather than to limit it. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments, ordinary technicians in the field should understand that the specific implementation methods of the present invention can still be modified or some technical features can be replaced by equivalents without departing from the spirit of the technical solution of the present invention, which should be included in the scope of the technical solution for protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A drone recovery device, characterized in that: It includes a telescopic arm assembly, a folding arm assembly, a crossbar assembly, a turntable, a slewing mechanism, a base and a recovery rope assembly; The turntable is arranged on the base through a rotating mechanism; The tail end of the crossbar assembly is connected to the turntable, the tail end of the telescopic arm assembly is connected to the turntable, and the front end of the telescopic arm assembly is connected to the tail end of the folding arm assembly; The turntable, telescopic arm assembly, folding arm assembly, and crossbar assembly form a C-shaped structure accommodation space, and the recovery rope assembly connects the upper and lower notches of the C-shaped structure, thereby forming a complete UAV collision rope recovery space; The folding arm assembly includes a folding arm I and a folding arm II; wherein the folding arm I is hinged to the front end of the telescopic arm assembly and forms an angle less than 180° with the telescopic arm assembly; The folding arm II is hinged to the folding arm I, and the angle between the two varies from 0 to 180°; The folding arm assembly also includes a luffing cylinder II and a luffing cylinder III; One end of the luffing cylinder II is hinged to the folding arm I, and the other end of the luffing cylinder II is hinged to the connecting rods I and II, and the connecting rod I is hinged to the front end of the telescopic arm assembly, and the connecting rod II is hinged to the folding arm I; the folding arm assembly is pitched to a predetermined angle by the luffing cylinder II; One end of the luffing cylinder III is hinged to the folding arm I, and the other end of the luffing cylinder III is hinged to the connecting rod III and the connecting rod IV, and the connecting rod III is hinged to the folding arm I, and the connecting rod IV is hinged to the folding arm II; the folding arm II is swung to 180 degrees by the luffing cylinder III; After the folding arm II is unfolded, the freedom of one direction of the rotational position is limited by a mechanical limiter located at the hinge between the folding arm I and the folding arm II; The oil supply and oil return of the luffing cylinder II and the luffing cylinder III are through a high-pressure hose reel, and the luffing cylinder II and the luffing cylinder III each have an oil inlet and an oil return; The crossbar assembly includes a crossbar basic arm, a crossbar telescopic arm I, a crossbar telescopic arm II, a brake motor and a rope assembly; The rope assembly comprises a steel wire rope, a rope joint I and a rope joint II; The brake motor is fixed on the crossbar basic arm, and a roller is provided on the rotating shaft of the brake motor. The steel wire rope is wound around the roller for multiple turns to form a rope joint I and a rope joint II which are displaced up and down. The rope joint I passes over the fixed pulley installed on the crossbar basic arm and is connected to the tail of the crossbar telescopic arm I, and the rope joint II is connected to the head of the crossbar telescopic arm I; The telescopic arm assembly comprises a basic arm and a multi-section telescopic arm, the multi-section telescopic arm is sequentially installed in the basic arm, and the multi-section telescopic arm is synchronously telescoped on the basic arm through the structural mode of the single cylinder rope adding assembly; The telescopic arm assembly is connected to the luffing oil cylinder I to pitch the telescopic arm assembly to a predetermined angle; The bottom surface of the base is provided with a circle of threaded connection holes I for fixing to a fixed surface by means of a plurality of bolts; When the UAV recovery device is in a retracted state, the front of the UAV recovery device is supported by a support frame fixed on the fixed surface.

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