aircraft

Abstract

The present application provides an aircraft which is more basic in configuration and which adopts a safety countermeasure. The aircraft of the present application has a main body portion, a thrust portion provided with one or more thrust units, a connecting portion which connects the main body portion and the thrust portion in a manner such that the connecting portion can be displaced within a prescribed range, and a wing portion provided to at least either the main body portion or the thrust portion. According to the configuration, an aircraft which is more basic in configuration and which adopts a safety countermeasure can be provided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to an aircraft. Background Technology

[0002] In recent years, various services have been provided that utilize rotary-wing aircraft (hereinafter collectively referred to as "aircraft"), such as drones or unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), for various purposes (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

[0003] Furthermore, among such aircraft are those disclosed in Patent Document 2, which have a cargo-carrying section.

[0004] Existing technical documents

[0005] Patent documents

[0006] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-15697

[0007] Patent Document 2: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2017-159751 Summary of the Invention

[0008] The problem that the invention aims to solve

[0009] In the case of transporting the aforementioned goods, the technology described in Patent Document 2, in addition to its complex structure, does not implement measures to counteract crosswinds during descent, which poses a safety problem.

[0010] Therefore, one object of the present invention is to provide an aircraft with a more basic construction and safety measures.

[0011] Methods for solving problems

[0012] According to the present invention, an aircraft can be obtained having:

[0013] Main body;

[0014] The thrust section has one or more thrust units.

[0015] A connecting portion that connects the main body portion to the thrust portion in a manner that allows for displacement within a specified range; and

[0016] A wing portion, which is disposed on at least one of the main body portion or the thrust portion.

[0017] Invention Effects

[0018] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an aircraft with a more basic construction and safety measures. Attached Figure Description

[0019] Figure 1 This is a diagram of the aircraft according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The aircraft shown is in a horizontal flight state.

[0020] Figure 2 This is a diagram of the aircraft according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The aircraft shown is in its landing state.

[0021] Figure 3 This is a diagram of the aircraft according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The aircraft shown is in its landing state.

[0022] Figure 4 This is a diagram of the aircraft according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. The aircraft shown is in its landing state.

[0023] Figure 5 This is a diagram of the aircraft according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The aircraft shown is in a horizontal flight state.

[0024] Figure 6 This is a diagram of the aircraft according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention. The aircraft shown is in its landing state.

[0025] Figure 7 It means Figure 1 or Figure 5 The diagram shows the functional blocks of the flight section of the aircraft.

[0026] Figure 8 This is an explanatory diagram (one) of an aircraft involved in a variation of the present invention.

[0027] Figure 9 This is an explanatory diagram (second example) of an aircraft involved in a variation of the present invention.

[0028] Symbol Explanation

[0029] 1, 2: Aircraft; 10, 110: Main body; 20: Thrust unit; 21: Motor (thrust unit); 22: Propeller (rotating wing); 23, 123: Both ends; 40: Wing; 40A, 140A: Forward end; 140: Both wings; 150: Support leg mechanism; 170: Storage section; L: Cargo. Detailed Implementation

[0030] The invention according to this embodiment has the following structure.

[0031] [Project 1]

[0032] An aircraft having:

[0033] Main body;

[0034] The thrust section has one or more thrust units.

[0035] A connecting portion that connects the main body portion to the thrust portion in a manner that allows for displacement within a specified range; and

[0036] A wing portion, which is disposed on at least one of the main body portion or the thrust portion.

[0037] [Project 2]

[0038] The aircraft described in Project 1 further comprises:

[0039] The control unit controls the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit and the main body at least during level flight, and the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit and the main body at least during descent can be changed by the displacement of the connecting part.

[0040] [Project 3]

[0041] According to the aircraft described in Project 2, wherein,

[0042] In the first state, the thrust unit is oriented towards the direction of travel.

[0043] In the second state, the thrust unit is oriented in a direction oblique to the vertical direction.

[0044] [Project 4]

[0045] According to the aircraft described in Project 3, wherein,

[0046] The thrust unit has two ends, each of which has a rotating blade that generates thrust.

[0047] The connecting portion connects the front part of the main body to approximately the center of the thrust portion.

[0048] [Project 5]

[0049] According to the aircraft described in Project 4, wherein,

[0050] The main body has two wings.

[0051] The two wings have rearward-sloping front ends.

[0052] The two ends can take the connecting part as a starting point and move along the front end.

[0053] [Project 6]

[0054] According to the aircraft described in Project 4, wherein,

[0055] The two ends each have wings.

[0056] The two wings have rearward-sloping front ends.

[0057] The thrust unit is located at the front end.

[0058] [Project 7]

[0059] The aircraft described in any one of Projects 1 to 6, wherein,

[0060] The main body is provided with a support leg mechanism for supporting the aircraft.

[0061] [Project 8]

[0062] The aircraft described in any one of Projects 1 to 7, wherein,

[0063] The direction of displacement includes at least the yaw direction.

[0064] [Project 9]

[0065] According to the aircraft described in Project 8, wherein,

[0066] The direction of the displacement is only the lateral direction.

[0067] [Project 10]

[0068] The aircraft described in any one of Projects 2 through 9, wherein,

[0069] It includes a storage section, configured to move goods from the front to the rear.

[0070] At least in the first state, the cargo is located in front.

[0071] [Project 11]

[0072] According to the aircraft described in Project 10, wherein,

[0073] At least during landing, the cargo should be positioned at the rear.

[0074] Next, the aircraft according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0075] <Construction>

[0076] like Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the aircraft 1 of this embodiment includes: a main body 10, a thrust unit 20, a connecting part 30, a wing part 40, and a control unit (not shown). The thrust unit 20 is provided in one or more thrust units. In this embodiment, the thrust unit 20 has two motors 21, one on the left and one on the right, centered on the connecting part 30, as thrust units. The motors 21 rotate the propeller 22, which will be described later. For example, the drive unit may include an electric motor or an engine.

[0077] The connecting part 30 connects the main body 10 and the thrust part 20 in a manner that allows for displacement within a specified range. In this embodiment, the connecting part 30 employs a universal joint that can freely swing about an axis.

[0078] The control unit controls the aircraft in a manner that allows it to switch between a first state and a second state. The first state refers to a state in which the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit 20 and the main body 10 is fixed, at least during level flight. The second state refers to a state in which the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit 20 and the main body 10 can be changed via the connecting part 30, at least during descent.

[0079] The wing portion 40 is disposed in at least one of the main body portion 10 or the thrust portion 20. That is, the wing portion 40 may be disposed in the main body portion 10 (Embodiment 1) or disposed in the thrust portion 20 (Embodiment 2), and these cases will be described below.

[0080] (Example 1)

[0081] The thrust section 20 has two ends 23, each of which has a propeller 22 (rotating blade) that generates thrust. The propeller 22 can be driven by a motor 21 to rotate about the rotation axis (e.g., the long axis of the motor) of the motor 21 in a clockwise and / or counterclockwise direction.

[0082] The connecting portion 30 connects the front part of the main body 10 to approximately the center of the thrust portion 20. The main body 10 has two wing portions 40. The two wing portions 40 have rearwardly inclined front end portions 40A. The two end portions 23 are capable of shifting along the front end portions 40A, using the connecting portion 30 as a starting point.

[0083] <Methods of Flight>

[0084] The following is for reference Figures 1 to 4 This describes the aircraft's takeoff, flight, and landing methods in this embodiment.

[0085] like Figure 1 As shown, when it is desired to ascend from the landing state (initial state), propeller 22 is directed upwards (i.e., upwards to generate thrust). During ascent, motor 21 is rotated in the state shown in the diagram. During ascent and hovering of aircraft 1, [the following is a description of the rotation process]. Figure 1The state shown indicates a direct vertical ascent.

[0086] When the transition from hovering to level flight is completed, the aircraft 1 enters its first state. In the first state, the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit 20 and the main body 10 is fixed. Figure 1 As shown, in the first state, motor 21 is oriented towards the direction of travel (forward). By oriented motor 21 forward, the aircraft 1 can obtain propulsion for forward movement.

[0087] Furthermore, in situations such as reaching the destination airspace, in order to hover again, the position is changed to be in harmony with... Figure 1 The same posture. Then, in this state, aircraft 1 descends for landing. During descent, aircraft 1 transitions from the first state to... Figure 3 The second state is shown. In the second state, the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit 20 and the main body 10 can be changed through the connecting part 30. Furthermore, in the second state, the motor 21 is oriented in a direction oblique to the vertical direction. That is, in the second state, the main body 10 remains perpendicular to the landing surface, and only the motor 21 is tilted. Therefore, even in windy conditions, it is possible to maintain the aircraft's attitude and control its position.

[0088] Furthermore, in the second state, since the thrust unit 20 moves forward, the center of gravity G shifts backward as the thrust unit 20 moves. Therefore, the fuselage's attitude can be stabilized. Moreover, by orienting the motor 21 in a direction oblique to the vertical direction, the vertical component of the forward thrust can be used more efficiently than... Figure 1 The small size of the shown state allows for an increase in descent speed. Furthermore, it enables the aircraft 1 to land in a manner that prevents an excessive decrease in the rotational speed of motor 21. Therefore, it is possible to implement updraft countermeasures while simultaneously increasing the minimum rotational speed of motor 21.

[0089] (Example 2)

[0090] Next, refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 The gas generator according to the second embodiment of the present invention will now be described. Furthermore, unless otherwise specified, the parts of the symbols whose second digit ends in the same position as those in the first embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, and therefore the description is omitted. Next, refer to... Figure 5 and Figure 6 The aircraft involved in Embodiment 2 will be described below. Furthermore, unless otherwise specified, the parts of the symbols for the second digit that are the same as those in Embodiment 1 are the same as those in Embodiment 1, and therefore the description is omitted.

[0091] Each of the two ends 123 has a wing 140. The two wings 140 have a rearwardly inclined front end 140A. A thrust unit 21 is disposed at the front end 140A.

[0092] A support leg mechanism 150 for supporting the aircraft 2 is provided on the main body 110. An opening 160 is formed on the main body 110 for unfolding or retracting the support leg mechanism 150 relative to the main body 110. The opening 160 has a shape that gradually widens downward from the connecting portion 30 when the support leg mechanism 150 is in the unfolded state relative to the main body 110.

[0093] The aircraft 2 has a storage section 170 configured to move cargo L from the front to the rear. At least in a first state, cargo L is located in the front. The first state refers to a state in which the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit 20 and the main body 10 is fixed, at least during level flight. In the first state, the motor 21 faces the direction of travel (forward).

[0094] At least during landing, aircraft 2 positions cargo L at the rear. This causes the center of gravity G to shift rearward.

[0095] The aforementioned rotary-wing aircraft has Figure 7 The function block shown. In addition... Figure 7 The functional blocks represent the minimum reference structure. The flight controller is the so-called processing unit. The processing unit can have more than one processor, such as a programmable processor (e.g., a central processing unit (CPU)).

[0096] The processing unit has a memory (not shown) that it can access. The memory stores logic, code, and / or program commands that the processing unit can execute to perform more than one step.

[0097] The memory may include removable media such as SD cards or random access memory (RAM) or external storage devices. Data acquired from cameras or sensors can be directly transferred and stored in the memory. For example, still images and video data captured by cameras are stored in internal or external memory.

[0098] The processing unit includes a control module configured to control the state of the rotary-wing aircraft. For example, the control module controls the rotary-wing aircraft's propulsion mechanism (motor, etc.) to adjust its six degrees of freedom (translational motion x, y, and z, and rotational motion θ). x θ y and θ z The control module controls the spatial configuration, speed, and / or acceleration of the rotary-wing aircraft. It can control the status of one or more of the onboard components and sensors.

[0099] The processing unit is capable of communicating with a transceiver unit configured to send and / or receive data from one or more external devices (e.g., terminals, display devices, or other remote controllers). The transceiver can use any suitable communication means, such as wired or wireless communication.

[0100] For example, the transceiver can utilize one or more of the following: local area network (LAN), wide area network (WAN), infrared, wireless, WiFi, peer-to-peer (P2P) network, telecommunications network, cloud communication, etc.

[0101] The transceiver unit can send and / or receive one or more of the following: data acquired by sensors, processing results generated by processing units, specified control data, and user commands from terminals or remote controllers.

[0102] The sensor types in this embodiment may include inertial sensors (accelerometers, gyroscopes), GPS sensors, proximity sensors (e.g., radar), or vision and image sensors (e.g., cameras).

[0103] The rotary-wing aircraft of the present invention is expected to be used as a dedicated aircraft for medium- and long-distance express delivery services, as well as for industrial applications such as surveillance operations over a wide range, reconnaissance in mountainous areas, and rescue operations. Furthermore, the rotary-wing aircraft of the present invention can be used in aircraft-related industries such as multi-rotor drones, and is also preferably used as an aircraft capable of aerial photography missions by incorporating cameras or similar devices. In addition, it can be used in various industries such as security, agriculture, and infrastructure monitoring.

[0104] The above-described embodiments are merely illustrative for easy understanding of the present invention and are not intended to limit or explain the present invention. The present invention can be modified and improved without departing from its spirit, and the present invention naturally includes its equivalents.

[0105] In the above embodiments, an example was described where the direction of displacement was only the yaw direction (around the Y-axis). The invention is not limited to this; the direction of displacement only needs to include at least the yaw direction. That is, in addition to the yaw direction, displacement can also occur along the rotational or pitch directions.

[0106] In the above embodiments, the connecting part 30 is shown as an example of a universal joint that can freely swing about one axis. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the connecting part 30 may also use a universal joint that can freely swing about two or three axes.

[0107] In the above embodiments, the wing portion 40 may be provided on the main body portion 10 (Embodiment 1) or on the thrust portion 20 (Embodiment 2). These cases have been described, but the wing portion 40 may of course be provided on both the main body portion 10 and the thrust portion 20.

[0108] (Modified Example)

[0109] like Figure 8 As shown, both ends 23 can also be partially movable. That is, the left side portion 23L of the paper surface at both ends 23 can be fixed to the wing 40, while only the right side portion 23R of the paper surface is movable in the lateral direction (around the Y-axis). According to this structure, as Figure 9 As shown, by rotating the motor 21 located on the right side 23R of the paper and stopping the rotation of the motor 21 located on the left side 23L of the paper, the aircraft can hover in a downwind manner.

Claims

1. An aircraft, characterized in that, have: Main body; The thrust section has one or more thrust units. A connecting portion that connects the main body portion to the thrust portion in a manner that allows for displacement within a specified range; and Wings, which are disposed on the main body, The thrust unit has two ends, each of which has a rotating blade that generates thrust. The connecting portion connects the front part of the main body to approximately the center of the thrust portion. The main body has two wings. The two wings have rearward-sloping front ends. The two ends can take the connecting part as a starting point and move along the front end.

2. The aircraft according to claim 1, characterized in that, Further features: The control unit controls the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit and the main body at least during level flight, and the relative positional relationship between the thrust unit and the main body at least during descent can be changed by the displacement of the connecting part.

3. The aircraft according to claim 2, characterized in that, In the first state, the thrust unit is oriented towards the direction of travel. In the second state, the thrust unit is oriented in a direction oblique to the vertical direction.

4. The aircraft according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that, The direction of displacement includes at least the yaw direction.

5. The aircraft according to claim 4, characterized in that, The direction of the displacement is only the lateral direction.

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