A beyond visual range remote control system for aircraft

Abstract

The present invention provides an aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system, specifically a networked point-to-multipoint beyond-visual-range remote control system, which belongs to the field of aircraft control technology. The aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system provided by the present invention uses a networked data transmission radio to network and communicate multiple sets of autopilots with ground data exchange equipment, signal acquisition and distribution modules and ground control stations. The autopilot realizes the transmission of telemetry data and remote control commands with the ground control station through the data transmission radio. The signal acquisition and distribution module selects a set of autopilots through the selection command, and sends the remote control command of the remote controller to the selected autopilot, and sends the command of the automatic control mode to other unselected autopilots. The aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system provided by the present invention can not only improve the remote control reliability during the take-off and landing of the aircraft and the safety during remote flight, but also can realize the remote control of multiple sets of autopilots by one set of ground equipment, reduce the number of ground equipment, and reduce the complexity of the system.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of aircraft control technology, and in particular to an aircraft beyond visual range remote control system. Background Art

[0002] The flight process of an unmanned aerial vehicle is generally divided into three stages: take-off, cruising, and landing. Operator intervention is often required during the take-off and landing stages.

[0003] At present, most autopilot remote control solutions on the market place the remote control receiver on the aircraft, and the autopilot reads the remote control command through the S.BUS interface of the receiver. However, the control distance of commercial remote control is very limited, generally nominally 1Km. In the actual remote control process, it is easy for the remote control signal to fail, causing the aircraft to lose control and crash.

[0004] In addition, in the single-machine flight mode, one operator holding a remote controller can meet the flight requirements, but when multiple aircraft are flying in formation, multiple remote controllers and multiple operators are required. As the number of formation aircraft increases, this method is likely to cause communication barriers between the ground station and the operators, and will also cause bloated ground equipment, greatly reducing the maintainability and safety of the system during flight. At the same time, the need for multiple operators also restricts the scale of formation flight.

[0005] Therefore, the industry is in urgent need of a new technology for an aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system. Summary of the invention

[0006] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an aircraft beyond visual range remote control system to solve the technical problems of reliability, scalability and difficult-to-overcome communication problems existing in the prior art aircraft.

[0007] To achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention provides an aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system, comprising a set of ground equipment and a plurality of sets of airborne equipment connected to the ground equipment via a network;

[0008] The airborne equipment includes an autopilot and an airborne data transmission radio station connected to the autopilot;

[0009] The ground equipment includes a ground control station, ground data exchange equipment, a ground data transmission radio station, a signal acquisition and distribution module, a remote control receiver and a remote control;

[0010] The remote controller sends the remote control signal to the remote control receiver, the remote control receiver sends the received remote control signal to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the ground control station sends a gating instruction to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the signal acquisition and distribution module switches the operation mode of the selected autopilot corresponding to the remote control signal to the remote control mode according to the gating instruction, and then sends the remote control signal to the selected autopilot through the ground data exchange equipment, the ground data transmission radio and the airborne data transmission radio in turn, and controls the selected autopilot according to the remote control signal.

[0011] Furthermore, in the autopilot mode, the ground control station sends remote control commands to multiple autopilots through ground data exchange equipment, ground data transmission radio and airborne data transmission radio in sequence, and receives telemetry data from multiple autopilots.

[0012] Furthermore, the ground equipment is connected to multiple sets of airborne equipment via TCP / IP protocol.

[0013] Furthermore, each autopilot is provided with an independent IP address.

[0014] Furthermore, the signal acquisition and distribution module generates a remote control instruction sent in a high frequency form and an automatic control mode instruction sent in a low frequency form according to the selection instruction.

[0015] Furthermore, if the autopilot receives a remote control command from a remote controller through an onboard data transmission radio, the remote control command is directly output through an interface on the autopilot to drive an actuator on the aircraft; if the autopilot receives an automatic control mode command through the onboard data transmission radio, the control command solved by the autopilot is output through an interface on the autopilot to drive the actuator on the aircraft.

[0016] Furthermore, the remote control receiver receives the radio signal sent by the remote control and parses it into data packets, and outputs it to the signal acquisition and distribution module through the S.BUS protocol.

[0017] Furthermore, the data packet includes a PWM value for controlling an actuator of the aircraft and a state parameter of a remote controller.

[0018] Furthermore, the signal acquisition and distribution module is connected to the remote control receiver via an S.BUS interface or a PWM interface.

[0019] Furthermore, the remote control receiver is a remote control receiver supporting the S.BUS protocol; the remote controller is a complete set of remote control receivers; and the ground data exchange device is a network switch.

[0020] The present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0021] 1. The present invention provides an aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system, which forms a networked point-to-multipoint beyond-visual-range remote control system through a set of ground equipment and multiple sets of airborne equipment network connection, realizing a beyond-visual-range remote control mode. The present invention adopts a networked digital radio for data transmission, which can not only realize the networking function between radios, but also realize communication at different distances by replacing different versions of digital radios. Specifically, the signal acquisition and distribution module receives the remote control command, re-encodes the remote control command and then sends it through the digital transmission link, and the operator can perform beyond-visual-range remote control through the flight data of the ground control station. In this way, not only can the signal of the remote control be kept unobstructed within the communication range of the digital transmission link, but also the remote control reliability during the take-off and landing of the aircraft and the safety during remote flight are greatly improved. Since almost all commercial remote controllers on the market can support the S.BUS protocol, this greatly improves the maintainability of the system and reduces the system cost.

[0022] 2. The invention provides an aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system, which forms a networked point-to-multipoint beyond-visual-range remote control system by connecting a set of ground equipment with multiple sets of airborne equipment. Specifically, the signal acquisition and distribution module automatically sends different control instructions to multiple aircraft according to the gating instructions issued by the ground control station. After receiving the instructions, the aircraft determines the self-driving or remote control state according to the data packet protocol, and sends the parsed remote control instructions to the actuators such as the steering gear. The ground control station only needs one remote control and one operator to perform remote control operation, and can realize point-to-multipoint remote control, which improves the maintainability and reliability of the system, and also greatly improves the communication efficiency between the ground station and the operator.

[0023] In addition to the above-described objects, features and advantages, the present invention has other objects, features and advantages. The present invention will be further described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0024] The drawings constituting a part of this application are used to provide a further understanding of the present invention. The exemplary embodiments of the present invention and their descriptions are used to explain the present invention and do not constitute an improper limitation of the present invention. In the drawings:

[0025] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a preferred embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention can be implemented in many different ways as defined and covered by the claims.

[0027] Reference Figure 1The present invention provides an aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system, specifically a networked point-to-multipoint beyond-visual-range remote control system, which specifically includes a set of ground equipment and multiple sets of airborne equipment connected to the ground equipment through a network; the ground equipment and the multiple sets of airborne equipment are connected through the TCP / IP protocol.

[0028] The airborne equipment includes an autopilot and an airborne data transmission radio connected to the autopilot; each autopilot is provided with an independent IP address.

[0029] The ground equipment includes a ground control station, ground data exchange equipment, a ground data transmission radio station, a signal acquisition and distribution module, a remote control receiver and a remote controller.

[0030] The remote controller sends the remote control signal to the remote control receiver, the remote control receiver sends the received remote control signal to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the ground control station sends a gating instruction to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the signal acquisition and distribution module switches the operation mode of the selected autopilot corresponding to the remote control signal to the remote control mode according to the gating instruction, and then sends the remote control signal to the selected autopilot through the ground data exchange equipment, the ground data transmission radio and the airborne data transmission radio in turn, and controls the selected autopilot according to the remote control signal.

[0031] The signal acquisition and distribution module in the present invention reads the data of the remote control receiver at a fixed frequency. After receiving the remote control signal, the signal acquisition and distribution module generates the remote control command and the automatic control mode command according to the gating command. In order to save the communication bandwidth, according to the gating command sent by the ground control station to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the remote control command is sent to the selected autopilot in a high frequency form, and the automatic control mode command is sent to the non-selected autopilot in a low frequency form. If the autopilot receives the remote control command of the remote controller through the airborne data transmission radio, the remote control command is directly output through the interface on the autopilot to drive the actuator on the aircraft; if the autopilot receives the automatic control mode command through the airborne data transmission radio, the control command solved by the autopilot is output through the interface on the autopilot to drive the actuator on the aircraft.

[0032] If the autopilot does not receive the above instructions, the autopilot will enter the autopilot mode. The ground control station can directly send remote control instructions to multiple autopilots through ground data exchange equipment, ground data transmission radio and airborne data transmission radio in sequence, and receive telemetry data from multiple autopilots.

[0033] The remote control receiver receives the radio signal sent by the remote controller and parses it into a data packet, which is then output to the signal acquisition and distribution module via the S.BUS protocol. The data packet includes the PWM value used to control the aircraft actuator and the state parameters of the remote controller. The signal acquisition and distribution module is connected to the remote control receiver via the S.BUS interface or the PWM interface.

[0034] The ground data exchange device in the present invention is a universal network switch; the remote control receiver is any commercial remote control receiver supporting the S.BUS protocol; and the remote controller is a complete set of remote control receivers.

[0035] The present invention adopts networked digital radio stations for data transmission, which can not only realize the networking function between radio stations, but also realize communication at different distances by replacing different versions.

[0036] In a specific embodiment, the airborne equipment includes autopilot 1, autopilot 2 and autopilot 3, each autopilot is provided with an independent IP address, and each autopilot is connected to an airborne data transmission radio station.

[0037] In the autopilot mode, the ground control station can directly send remote control commands to autopilot 1, autopilot 2 and autopilot 3 through the ground data exchange equipment, ground data transmission radio and airborne data transmission radio in sequence, and receive telemetry data from multiple sets of autopilots.

[0038] When the autopilot 2 needs to be remotely controlled, the remote control signal is sent to the remote control receiver through the remote controller, and the remote control receiver sends the received remote control signal to the signal acquisition and distribution module. The ground control station sends a gating instruction to the signal acquisition and distribution module, and the signal acquisition and distribution module switches the operation mode of the autopilot 2 to the control mode according to the gating instruction, and then transmits the remote control signal to the autopilot 2 through the ground data exchange equipment, the ground data transmission radio and the airborne data transmission radio in turn, and directly maps the control value of the operator to the actuators such as the steering gear and motor of the autopilot 2 according to the remote control signal to control the flight of the autopilot 2. The autopilot 1 and the autopilot 3 are in automatic control mode, and perform autopilot flight according to the waypoints uploaded by the ground control station.

[0039] When the autopilot 3 needs to be remotely controlled, the ground control station sends a selection command to the signal acquisition and distribution module through a button to change the autopilot 3 to the remote control mode. The signal acquisition and distribution module switches the IP address of the remote control command to the IP address of the autopilot 3 according to the TCP / IP protocol, and sends the autopilot command to the IP addresses of the autopilot 1 and the autopilot 2. In this way, the ground control station only needs one remote controller and one operator to perform remote control operations, and can realize point-to-multipoint remote control, which improves the maintainability and reliability of the system, and also greatly improves the communication efficiency between the ground station and the operator.

[0040] In summary, the present invention provides an aircraft beyond-visual-range remote control system, which uses a networked data transmission radio to build a local area network connecting the ground and the aircraft, and is connected through a TCP / IP network, and sends control instructions to the autopilot in the local area network through the signal acquisition and distribution module on the network. After receiving the instruction, the autopilot determines the self-driving or remote control state according to the data packet protocol, and sends the parsed remote control instruction to the actuator such as the servo. The operator can not only perform beyond-visual-range remote control through the flight data of the ground control station, but also can realize point-to-multiple-point remote control with only one remote controller and one operator remote control operation, which improves the maintainability and reliability of the system, and also greatly improves the communication efficiency between the ground station and the operator.

[0041] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. For those skilled in the art, the present invention may have various modifications and variations. Any modification, equivalent replacement, improvement, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention shall be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An aircraft beyond visual range remote control system, characterized in that: It includes a set of ground equipment and a plurality of sets of airborne equipment connected to the ground equipment via a network; The airborne equipment includes an autopilot and an airborne data transmission radio station connected to the autopilot; The ground equipment includes a ground control station, ground data exchange equipment, a ground data transmission radio station, a signal acquisition and distribution module, a remote control receiver and a remote control; The remote controller sends the remote control signal to the remote control receiver, the remote control receiver sends the received remote control signal to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the ground control station sends a gating instruction to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the signal acquisition and distribution module switches the operation mode of the selected autopilot corresponding to the remote control signal to the remote control mode according to the gating instruction, and then transmits the remote control signal to the selected autopilot through the ground data exchange equipment, the ground data transmission radio and the airborne data transmission radio in turn, and controls the selected autopilot according to the remote control signal; The signal acquisition and distribution module reads the data of the remote control receiver at a fixed frequency. After receiving the remote control signal, the signal acquisition and distribution module generates the remote control command and the automatic control mode command according to the gating command. In order to save the communication bandwidth, according to the gating command sent by the ground control station to the signal acquisition and distribution module, the remote control command is sent to the selected autopilot in the form of high frequency, and the automatic control mode command is sent to the non-selected autopilot in the form of low frequency. If the autopilot receives remote control commands from the remote controller through the onboard data transmission radio, it will directly output the remote control commands through the interface on the autopilot to drive the actuators on the aircraft; If the autopilot receives the automatic control mode command through the onboard data transmission radio, the control command solved by the autopilot is output through the interface on the autopilot to drive the actuator on the aircraft; If the autopilot does not receive the above instructions, the autopilot will operate in autopilot mode. The ground control station can directly send remote control instructions to multiple autopilots through ground data exchange equipment, ground data radio and airborne data radio in sequence, and receive telemetry data from multiple autopilots.

2. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 1, characterized in that: In the autopilot mode, the ground control station sends remote control commands to multiple autopilots through ground data exchange equipment, ground data radio and airborne data radio in turn, and receives telemetry data from multiple autopilots.

3. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The ground equipment is connected with multiple sets of airborne equipment via TCP / IP protocol.

4. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 3, characterized in that: Each autopilot is set with an independent IP address.

5. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The signal acquisition and distribution module generates a remote control instruction sent in a high frequency form and an automatic control mode instruction sent in a low frequency form according to the selection instruction.

6. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 5, characterized in that: If the autopilot receives a remote control command from a remote controller through the onboard data transmission radio, the remote control command is directly output through an interface on the autopilot to drive the actuator on the aircraft; if the autopilot receives an automatic control mode command through the onboard data transmission radio, the control command solved by the autopilot is output through the interface on the autopilot to drive the actuator on the aircraft.

7. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The remote control receiver receives the radio signal sent by the remote control and parses it into data packets, and outputs it to the signal acquisition and distribution module through the S.BUS protocol.

8. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The data packet includes a PWM value for controlling an aircraft actuator and a state parameter of a remote controller.

9. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The signal acquisition and distribution module is connected to the remote control receiver via an S.BUS interface or a PWM interface.

10. The aircraft beyond visual range remote control system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The remote control receiver is a remote control receiver supporting the S.BUS protocol; the remote controller is a complete set of remote control receivers; and the ground data exchange equipment is a network switch.

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