A long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle

Abstract

The present invention belongs to the field of underwater robots, and specifically relates to a long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle. It includes a main underwater vehicle body, on which a main antenna is provided, and an auxiliary battery compartment is provided on the outside of the main underwater vehicle body, and the auxiliary battery compartment includes an auxiliary battery compartment body and a power supply cable, and a control system and a battery pack are provided inside the auxiliary battery compartment body, and the power supply cable is connected to the power supply system inside the main underwater vehicle body through a connecting mechanism, and the connecting mechanism is connected to the control system. The present invention adopts an actively detachable auxiliary battery compartment to power the front-end work of the main underwater vehicle, and the auxiliary battery compartment does not occupy the space inside the cabin of the main vehicle, which effectively improves the endurance of the underwater vehicle. When the power of the auxiliary battery compartment is almost exhausted, the control system controls the connecting mechanism to disconnect from the main underwater vehicle and recover the auxiliary battery compartment.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the field of underwater robots, and in particular relates to a long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle. Background Art

[0002] Autonomous underwater vehicles are a new type of ocean monitoring equipment that has its own energy, self-propulsion, self-control, and underwater control and sensing capabilities. They can operate independently without the mother ship. As the types of underwater operations that autonomous vehicles can perform increase, people have higher and higher requirements for the endurance of autonomous underwater vehicles.

[0003] At present, most autonomous underwater vehicles rely on their own batteries for energy, and their endurance is limited by the battery capacity. In order to increase the endurance, in addition to reducing the resistance of the vehicle body, using high-efficiency propellers, and reducing the power consumption of electronic equipment, the most direct and effective way is to increase the battery capacity. However, if the space for the vehicle is fixed, increasing the battery capacity will occupy the space of the vehicle and weaken the carrying capacity of the vehicle. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of the problems existing in the prior art, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle that can use an auxiliary battery compartment to increase the power supply range, and the auxiliary battery compartment can be separated and recovered.

[0005] The present invention provides a long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle, comprising a main underwater vehicle body, wherein the main underwater vehicle body is provided with a main antenna, an auxiliary battery compartment is provided on the outside of the main underwater vehicle body, the auxiliary battery compartment comprises an auxiliary battery compartment body and a power supply cable, a control system and a battery pack are provided inside the auxiliary battery compartment body, the power supply cable is connected to the power supply system inside the main underwater vehicle body through a connecting mechanism, and the connecting mechanism is connected to the control system.

[0006] Preferably, a power socket is provided on the wall of the main underwater vehicle body, and the power socket is connected to the power supply system. One end of the power supply cable is connected to the battery pack, and the other end is provided with a plug corresponding to the power socket. The power supply cable runs through the interior of the connecting mechanism, and the plug comes out from one end of the connecting mechanism.

[0007] Preferably, an electromagnet is provided at one end of the connecting mechanism, and a corresponding iron block is provided on the outer wall of the main underwater vehicle body.

[0008] Preferably, a spring is further provided at one end of the connecting mechanism, the electromagnet and the iron block are both ring-shaped, and the spring and the plug are both located inside the ring surrounded by the electromagnet.

[0009] Preferably, the battery pack is provided with a battery management system, and the battery management system is connected to the control system.

[0010] Preferably, a dumping block is further provided inside the auxiliary battery compartment body, and a dumping port is provided at the bottom of the auxiliary battery compartment at a position corresponding to the dumping block, and the dumping port is connected to the control system.

[0011] Preferably, a secondary battery compartment antenna is provided on the secondary battery compartment body, and the secondary battery compartment antenna is respectively connected to the control system and the battery pack.

[0012] Preferably, the battery pack is a rechargeable battery.

[0013] Preferably, there are multiple auxiliary battery compartments.

[0014] Preferably, a main battery is provided inside the main underwater vehicle body.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0016] (1) The present invention provides a long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle, which uses an actively detachable auxiliary battery compartment to power the front-end operation of the main underwater vehicle. The auxiliary battery compartment does not occupy the space inside the cabin of the main vehicle, effectively improving the endurance of the underwater vehicle.

[0017] (2) When the power of the auxiliary battery compartment is almost exhausted, the control system controls the connecting mechanism to disconnect from the main underwater vehicle and recover the auxiliary battery compartment. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] In order to more clearly illustrate the specific implementation methods of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the specific implementation methods or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some implementation methods of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0019] Figure 1 A three-dimensional diagram of an embodiment of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 2 It is a front view of an embodiment of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 3 A side view of an embodiment of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the components of the auxiliary battery compartment in an embodiment of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 5 It is an enlarged view of the connection mechanism part of the embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Description of reference numerals:

[0025] 1. Main underwater vehicle body; 2. Main antenna; 3. Auxiliary battery compartment body; 4. Connecting mechanism; 5. Auxiliary battery compartment antenna; 6. Control system; 7. Jetting block; 8. Battery pack; 9. Jetting port; 10. Power supply cable; 11. Plug; 12. Electromagnet; 13. Spring; 14. Power supply socket; 15. Iron block. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0026] The technical solution of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the embodiments. Obviously, the described embodiments are part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0027] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "length", "width", "thickness", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", "clockwise", "counterclockwise" and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the referred device or element must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be understood as limiting the present invention.

[0028] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, "multiple" means two or more, unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined. In addition, the terms "installed", "connected" and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense, for example, it can be a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; it can be a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; it can be a direct connection, or it can be indirectly connected through an intermediate medium, or it can be the internal connection of two components. For those of ordinary skill in the art, the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention can be understood according to specific circumstances.

[0029] Example

[0030] See also Figure 1-5A long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle comprises a main underwater vehicle body 1, a main antenna 2 is installed on the main underwater vehicle body 1, a main battery is arranged inside the main underwater vehicle body 1, and a plurality of auxiliary battery compartments are arranged outside the main underwater vehicle body 1. In this embodiment, three auxiliary battery compartments are arranged, and the three auxiliary battery compartments are respectively located on the left and right lower sides of the outer wall of the main underwater vehicle body 1. The auxiliary battery compartment comprises an auxiliary battery compartment body 3 and a power supply cable 10. An auxiliary battery compartment antenna 5 is arranged outside the auxiliary battery compartment body 3. A control system 6 and a battery pack 8 are arranged inside the auxiliary battery compartment body 3. The battery pack 8 is a rechargeable battery. The power supply cable 10 is connected to the power supply system inside the main underwater vehicle body 1 through a connecting mechanism 4. The connecting mechanism 4 is connected to the control system 6. The auxiliary battery compartment is connected to the power supply system of the main underwater vehicle through the power supply cable 10 through the connecting mechanism 4. The auxiliary battery compartment antenna 5 is respectively connected to the control system 6 and the battery pack 8. The control system 6 adopts a conventional control system in the art, and a PLC control system can be adopted.

[0031] Figure 5 In order to clearly show the structure of the connection mechanism, only part of the outer wall of the main underwater vehicle body and the auxiliary battery compartment is drawn, such as Figure 5 As shown, a power socket 14 is provided on the wall of the main underwater vehicle body 1, and the power socket 14 is connected to the power supply system. One end of the power supply cable 10 is connected to the battery pack 8, and the other end is provided with a plug 11 corresponding to the power socket 14. The power supply cable 10 runs through the interior of the connecting mechanism 4, and the plug 11 passes through one end of the connecting mechanism 4. The end of the connecting mechanism 4 where the plug 11 is provided is also provided with an electromagnet 12 and a spring 13. A corresponding iron block 15 is provided on the outer wall of the main underwater vehicle body 1, and both the electromagnet 12 and the iron block 15 are annular. The spring 13 and the plug 11 on the power supply cable 10 are both located inside the ring surrounded by the electromagnet 12. When in use, the electromagnet 12 on the connection mechanism 4 and the iron block 15 on the outer wall of the main underwater vehicle body 1 attract each other, the plug 11 is inserted into the power socket 14, and the battery pack 8 inside the auxiliary battery compartment body 3 supplies power to the main underwater vehicle body 1. When the battery pack 8 inside the auxiliary battery compartment body 3 is low in power, the control system 6 disconnects the power of the electromagnet 12, and the electromagnet 12 and the iron block 15 are no longer attracted to each other, so that the auxiliary battery compartment and the main underwater vehicle body 1 are separated, and the spring 13 accelerates the separation of the auxiliary battery compartment and the main underwater vehicle body 1. The plug 11 and the power socket 14 are both underwater plug-in connectors commercially available in the art.

[0032] The battery pack 8 is provided with a battery management system. The battery management system adopts the existing battery management system in the art and has the function of power monitoring. The battery management system is connected to the control system 6 .

[0033] A dumping block 7 is also provided inside the auxiliary battery compartment body 3 , and a dumping port 9 is provided at a position corresponding to the dumping block at the bottom of the auxiliary battery compartment, and the dumping port 9 is connected to the control system 6 .

[0034] Usage process:

[0035] The long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle of the present invention mainly uses the battery pack of the auxiliary battery compartment for power supply in the front stage of work, and the main battery carried by the main underwater vehicle does not work. In the front stage of work, the electromagnet on the connecting mechanism and the iron block on the outer wall of the main underwater vehicle body attract each other, the plug is inserted into the power supply socket, and the battery pack of the auxiliary battery compartment supplies power to the main underwater vehicle body. The battery pack is provided with a battery management system, which has the function of power monitoring. After the available power of the auxiliary battery compartment is exhausted (a small amount of power must be reserved for recycling communication), when the power of the auxiliary battery compartment is set to be low (can be 5%-10%), the battery management system transmits a signal to the control system, and the control system controls the disconnection of the electromagnet, the electromagnet and the iron block are no longer attracted to each other, and the separation of the auxiliary battery compartment and the main underwater vehicle body is realized, and the spring accelerates the separation of the auxiliary battery compartment and the main underwater vehicle body. At the same time, the main battery carried by the main underwater vehicle starts to supply power and continues to work in the back stage, effectively improving the endurance time of the underwater vehicle. After the auxiliary battery compartment is separated from the main underwater vehicle, the control system controls the jettison port to open, the jettison block is jettisoned from the jettison port, and the auxiliary battery compartment floats up using the positive buoyancy generated. After floating to the surface, the control system sends positioning information to the recovery mother ship through the auxiliary battery compartment antenna to guide the recovery personnel to recover the auxiliary battery compartment. The batteries carried in the auxiliary battery compartment are rechargeable batteries, which can be reused after recycling and charging, effectively reducing the cost of use.

[0036] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present invention, rather than to limit it. Although the present invention has been described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that they can still modify the technical solutions described in the aforementioned embodiments, or replace some or all of the technical features therein with equivalents. However, these modifications or replacements do not cause the essence of the corresponding technical solutions to deviate from the scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention.

Claims

1. A long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle, characterized in that: The invention comprises a main underwater vehicle body, wherein the main underwater vehicle body is provided with a main antenna, an auxiliary battery compartment is provided on the outside of the main underwater vehicle body, the auxiliary battery compartment comprises an auxiliary battery compartment body and a power supply cable, a control system and a battery pack are provided inside the auxiliary battery compartment body, the power supply cable is connected to the power supply system inside the main underwater vehicle body through a connecting mechanism, the connecting mechanism is connected to the control system, a power supply socket is provided on the wall of the main underwater vehicle body, the power supply socket is connected to the power supply system, one end of the power supply cable is connected to the battery pack, and the other end is provided with a plug corresponding to the power supply socket, the power supply cable runs through the inside of the connecting mechanism, and the plug passes through one end of the connecting mechanism, a jettisoning block is further provided inside the auxiliary battery compartment body, a jettisoning port is provided at a position corresponding to the jettisoning block at the bottom of the auxiliary battery compartment, the jettisoning port is connected to the control system, an auxiliary battery compartment antenna is provided on the auxiliary battery compartment body, and the auxiliary battery compartment antenna is respectively connected to the control system and the battery pack; After the auxiliary battery compartment is separated from the main underwater vehicle, the control system controls the jettison port to open, the jettison block is thrown away from the jettison port, and the auxiliary battery compartment floats up using the positive buoyancy generated. After floating to the surface, the control system sends positioning information to the recovery mother ship through the auxiliary battery compartment antenna to guide the recovery personnel to recover the auxiliary battery compartment.

2. The long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: An electromagnet is provided at one end of the connecting mechanism, and a corresponding iron block is provided on the outer wall of the main underwater vehicle body.

3. The long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle according to claim 2, characterized in that: A spring is also provided at one end of the connecting mechanism. The electromagnet and the iron block are both ring-shaped. The spring and the plug are both located inside the ring formed by the electromagnet.

4. The long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The battery pack is provided with a battery management system, and the battery management system is connected to the control system.

5. The long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The battery pack is a rechargeable battery.

6. The long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: There are multiple auxiliary battery compartments.

7. The long-endurance autonomous underwater vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: A main battery is arranged inside the main underwater vehicle body.

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