A telescopic fishing type mechanical hand for unmanned aerial vehicle

Abstract

The application discloses a telescopic fishing type manipulator for a UAV, which comprises a supporting mechanism which can be installed on the lower side of the UAV, a driving mechanism which is arranged on the supporting mechanism, the lower side of the supporting mechanism is vertically connected with a telescopic mechanism which can be freely telescoped, and the lower end of the telescopic mechanism is provided with a clamping jaw mechanism; the driving mechanism comprises a winding roller which is rotationally connected with the supporting mechanism and a rotating device which can drive the winding roller, and a rope is wound on the winding roller; the clamping jaw mechanism comprises a mounting frame which is connected with the lower end of the telescopic mechanism, a plurality of pawl parts are arranged on the lower side of the mounting frame along the outer periphery, the upper end of the pawl part is hinged with the mounting frame, a guide shaft is vertically arranged in the mounting frame and is slidingly connected with the mounting frame, and a plurality of transmission rods are circumferentially hinged with the lower end of the guide shaft; the telescopic fishing type manipulator for the UAV is provided, and when the clamping jaw mechanism impacts on the photovoltaic panel, the photovoltaic panel is not easily damaged.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of robotic arm technology, and more particularly to a retractable fishing robotic arm for use with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs). Background Technology

[0002] Using drones equipped with robotic arms to clear obstructions such as kites and clothing from rooftop distributed photovoltaic panels is an effective maintenance method to improve the efficiency of photovoltaic power generation.

[0003] Most existing robotic arms currently use an articulated design, as can be seen in patent application number CN2017202915292. It includes grippers, sequentially hinged joints, and a drive mechanism for driving the joints to rotate. The extension and retraction of this type of robotic arm depends on the drive mechanism. That is, when the drive mechanism is not activated, the robotic arm can not retract. When the robotic arm impacts the photovoltaic panel downwards, the impact force on the photovoltaic panel is relatively large, which can easily damage the photovoltaic panel. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the drawback of existing robotic arms that easily damage photovoltaic panels, this invention proposes a retractable fishing robotic arm for drones. When the gripper mechanism strikes the photovoltaic panel downwards, it is less likely to damage the panel.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention adopts the following technical solution: A retractable fishing manipulator for drones includes a support mechanism that can be mounted on the underside of the drone, and a drive mechanism mounted on the support mechanism. A freely retractable telescopic mechanism is vertically connected to the underside of the support mechanism, and a gripper mechanism is located at the lower end of the telescopic mechanism. The drive mechanism includes a winding roller rotatably connected to the support mechanism, and a rotating device that drives the winding roller. A rope is wound on the winding roller. The gripper mechanism includes a mounting frame connected to the lower end of the telescopic mechanism. Several gripper portions are arranged along the outer periphery of the lower side of the mounting frame. The upper ends of the gripper portions are hinged to the mounting frame. A guide shaft passes vertically through the mounting frame and is slidably connected to the mounting frame. The upper end of the guide shaft is connected to the rope, and several transmission rods are circumferentially hinged to the lower end of the guide shaft. Each transmission rod corresponds to one of the gripper portions, and the end of each transmission rod away from the guide shaft is hinged to the middle of a gripper portion. The guide shaft can move downwards under gravity to open the gripper portions. When the telescopic mechanism is extended to its longest state, the winding roller winds the rope, the guide shaft moves upwards along the mounting frame, and the gripper portions close.

[0006] With the above settings, the lifting and lowering and opening and closing of the gripper mechanism can be controlled by the winding roller to retract the rope, making the structure simpler; when the gripper mechanism strikes the photovoltaic panel downwards, the telescopic mechanism can retract freely, thereby reducing the impact force of the gripper mechanism on the photovoltaic panel and preventing damage to the photovoltaic panel.

[0007] Furthermore, the support mechanism includes a support base, a drive mechanism mounted on the support base, an upper end of a telescopic mechanism connected to the support base, and two parallel support rods detachably connected to the lower side of the support base. Both ends of the support rods are equipped with clamp structures that can be connected to the drone.

[0008] Furthermore, a bearing seat is provided on the upper side of the support base, and the two ends of the winding roller are rotatably connected to the bearing seat.

[0009] The above settings can reduce the resistance to the rotation of the winding roller.

[0010] Furthermore, the rotating device includes a motor mounted on a support base, the motor being connected to a worm gear, and a worm wheel that cooperates with the worm gear being fixedly connected to one end of the winding roller.

[0011] With the above configuration, the motor can drive the winding roller to rotate via the worm gear and worm, and when the motor is not running, the worm gear and worm have a self-locking effect to prevent accidental drop in the gripper mechanism.

[0012] Furthermore, the telescopic mechanism includes several connecting rods that intersect and are hinged to each other to form a telescopic frame structure. The upper end of the telescopic frame structure is hinged to the support seat, and the lower end of the telescopic frame structure is hinged to the mounting frame.

[0013] Furthermore, the connecting rod is made of nylon, the weight of the connecting rod is 2.5 to 3.0g, and the length of the telescopic mechanism 1 ranges from 100mm to 400mm.

[0014] With the above design, the connecting rod is lightweight, allowing even small drones to take off smoothly; it has high strength, making the telescopic mechanism less prone to damage; and it has good insulation, increasing operational safety.

[0015] Furthermore, the gripper mechanism is made of polyoxymethylene, and its mass is less than 280g.

[0016] The above settings make this application lightweight, allowing even small drones to take off smoothly.

[0017] Furthermore, the gripper includes a clamping block and two parallel rotating rods of equal length. The upper end of the rotating rod is hinged to the mounting bracket, and the lower end of the rotating rod is hinged to the clamping block. The end of the transmission rod away from the guide shaft is hinged to the middle of one of the rotating rods.

[0018] With the above settings, the gripping block will not rotate during the opening and closing process of the gripper, making it easy for the gripping block to hold the obstruction.

[0019] Furthermore, the mounting frame includes a first mounting plate and a second mounting plate arranged vertically. The first mounting plate is fixedly connected to the second mounting plate via a first connecting post. Both the first and second mounting plates are provided with through holes through which ropes pass. A fixed plate is provided on the lower side of the second mounting plate. A guide shaft passes vertically through the center of the fixed plate and is slidably connected to the fixed plate. Several side plates are fixedly connected along the circumference of the fixed plate. The upper side of the side plates is fixedly connected to the second connecting post and the second mounting plate. The upper end of the rotating rod is hinged to the lower side of the side plate.

[0020] Furthermore, motor 12 is configured as an S9150 servo. Attached Figure Description

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a retractable fishing robot as an example. Detailed Implementation

[0022] The technical solution of the present invention will be further described in detail below through embodiments and in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0023] See Figure 1 A retractable fishing manipulator for drones includes a support mechanism that can be mounted on the underside of the drone, and a drive mechanism mounted on the support mechanism. A freely retractable telescopic mechanism 1 is vertically connected to the lower side of the support mechanism, and a gripper mechanism is provided at the lower end of the telescopic mechanism 1. The drive mechanism includes a winding roller 2 rotatably connected to the support mechanism, and a rotating device capable of driving the winding roller 2. A rope 3 is wound on the winding roller 2. The gripper mechanism includes a mounting frame connected to the lower end of the telescopic mechanism 1, and a plurality of gripper portions 5 are provided along the outer periphery of the lower side of the mounting frame. The upper end of part 5 is hinged to the mounting frame. A guide shaft 6 passes vertically through the mounting frame. The guide shaft 6 and the mounting frame are slidably connected. The upper end of the guide shaft 6 is connected to the rope 3. Several transmission rods 7 are hinged circumferentially to the lower end of the guide shaft 6. Several transmission rods 7 correspond one-to-one with several gripper parts 5. The end of the transmission rod 7 away from the guide shaft 6 is hinged to the middle of the gripper part 5. The guide shaft 6 can move downward under the action of gravity to open the gripper part 5. When the telescopic mechanism 1 is extended to its longest state, the winding roller 2 winds the rope 3, the guide shaft 6 moves upward along the mounting frame, and the gripper part 5 closes.

[0024] With the above settings, the lifting and lowering and opening and closing of the gripper mechanism can be controlled by the winding roller 2 and the rope 3, making the structure simpler; when the gripper mechanism hits the photovoltaic panel downwards, the telescopic mechanism 1 can retract freely, thereby reducing the impact force of the gripper mechanism on the photovoltaic panel and preventing damage to the photovoltaic panel.

[0025] Specifically, initially, the telescopic mechanism 1 retracts to its shortest length, the gripper 5 closes, and the lower end of the gripper 5 tilts inward. When grabbing an obstruction on the photovoltaic panel, the drone flies to the upper side of the photovoltaic panel, the winding roller 2 releases the rope 3, and the gripper mechanism moves downward under gravity. The telescopic mechanism 1 extends. When the telescopic mechanism 1 reaches its longest extension, the mounting frame can no longer move downward, and the winding roller 2 continues to release the rope 3. Under the gravity of the guide shaft 6, the guide shaft 6 moves downward along the mounting frame. The guide shaft 6, similar to the frame of an umbrella, opens the gripper 5. (See [link to documentation]). Figure 1 At this point, the lower end of the rotating rod 52 tilts outward. After the drone flies above the obstruction, it moves downward, positioning the obstruction between the gripper parts 5. During this process, if the drone's downward speed is too fast and the gripper mechanism impacts the photovoltaic panel, the telescopic mechanism 1 can freely retract, thereby reducing the impact force of the gripper mechanism on the photovoltaic panel. After the drone is in position, the rotating device drives the winding roller 2, which winds the rope 3. The rope 3 first pulls the guide shaft 6, which moves upward along the mounting frame. During this process, the mounting frame does not move upward with the guide shaft 6 under the influence of gravity. The guide shaft 6 drives the gripper parts 5 to rotate inward through the transmission rod 7. After the gripper parts 5 clamp the obstruction, the guide shaft 6 cannot continue to move upward along the mounting frame. The winding roller 2 continues to wind the rope 3, which drives the mounting frame upward through the guide shaft 6. The telescopic mechanism 1 shortens, and the gripper mechanism carries the obstruction upward towards the drone until the telescopic mechanism 1 is shortened to its shortest length. Finally, the drone flies away from the photovoltaic panel.

[0026] As one implementation, the support mechanism includes a support base 8, a drive mechanism is mounted on the support base 8, the upper end of the telescopic mechanism 1 is connected to the support base 8, and two parallel support rods 9 are detachably connected to the lower side of the support base 8. The two ends of the support rods 9 are provided with clamp structures 10 that can be connected to the UAV.

[0027] In this application, applicable to the DJI M350 small drone, the two ends of the support rod 9 can be installed on the support feet of the drone through the clamp structure 10.

[0028] As one implementation method, a bearing seat 11 is provided on the upper side of the support base 8, and the two ends of the winding roller 2 are rotatably connected to the bearing seat 11.

[0029] The above settings can reduce the resistance to the rotation of the winding roller 2.

[0030] In one implementation, the rotating device includes a motor 12 mounted on a support base 8, the motor 12 being connected to a worm gear (not shown in the figure), and a worm wheel 13 cooperating with the worm gear being fixedly connected to one end of the winding roller 2.

[0031] With the above configuration, the motor 12 can drive the winding roller 2 to rotate via the worm gear 13 and the worm. When the motor 12 is not running, the worm gear 13 and the worm have a self-locking effect to prevent accidental drop in the gripper mechanism.

[0032] As one implementation, the telescopic mechanism 1 includes several connecting rods that intersect and are hinged to each other to form a telescopic frame structure. The upper end of the telescopic frame structure is hinged to the support seat 8, and the lower end of the telescopic frame structure is hinged to the mounting frame.

[0033] The telescopic frame structure can be referenced from the telescopic frame in application number CN2011103709641.

[0034] In one implementation, the connecting rod is made of nylon, the mass of the connecting rod is 2.5 to 3.0g, and the length of the telescopic mechanism 1 ranges from 100mm to 400mm.

[0035] With the above settings, the connecting rod is lightweight, allowing even small drones to take off smoothly; it has high strength, making the telescopic mechanism 1 less prone to damage; and it has good insulation, increasing operational safety.

[0036] As one implementation method, the gripper mechanism is made of polyoxymethylene, and the mass of the gripper mechanism is less than 280g.

[0037] The above settings make this application lightweight, allowing even small drones to take off smoothly.

[0038] In one implementation, the gripper 5 includes a clamping block 51 and two parallel rotating rods 52 of equal length. The upper end of the rotating rod 52 is hinged to the mounting bracket, and the lower end of the rotating rod 52 is hinged to the clamping block 51. The end of the transmission rod 7 away from the guide shaft 6 is hinged to the middle of one of the rotating rods 52.

[0039] With the above settings, the gripper 51 will not rotate much during the opening and closing process, which makes it easy for the gripper 51 to hold the obstruction.

[0040] Specifically, the two rotating rods 52 of the gripper part 5 are of equal length and parallel to each other. The mounting frame, rotating rods 52 and clamping block 51 basically form a parallelogram structure. The mounting frame and clamping block 51 are located on the upper and lower sides of the parallelogram structure, respectively. The two rotating rods 52 can be regarded as two opposite sides of the parallelogram structure. When the guide shaft 6 moves up or down along the mounting frame, the guide shaft 6 drives the rotating rods 52 to rotate through the transmission rod 7. The two rotating rods 52 of the gripper part 5 rotate synchronously, and the clamping block 51 moves outward or inward. When the mounting frame does not rotate, the clamping block 51 does not rotate, which makes it convenient for the clamping block 51 to clamp objects of different sizes. When the clamping block 51 moves inward, it can clamp the object. When the clamping block 51 moves outward, it can release the object.

[0041] As one implementation, the mounting frame includes a first mounting plate 41 and a second mounting plate 42 arranged vertically. The first mounting plate 41 is fixedly connected to the second mounting plate 42 via a first connecting post 43. Both the first mounting plate 41 and the second mounting plate 42 are provided with through holes 14 through which a rope 3 passes. A fixed plate 44 is provided on the lower side of the second mounting plate 42. A guide shaft 6 passes vertically through the center of the fixed plate 44 and is slidably connected to the fixed plate 44. Several side plates 45 are fixedly connected along the circumference of the fixed plate 44. The upper side of the side plate 45 is fixedly connected to the second mounting plate 42 via a second connecting post 46. The upper end of the rotating rod 52 is hinged to the lower side of the side plate 45.

[0042] In this application, one end of the side plate 45 is fixedly connected to the edge of the fixed plate 44, and the other end of the side plate 45 extends outward and then bends downward to form an L-shaped structure. The rotating rod 52 is hinged to the lower end of the side plate 45, and the end of the transmission rod 7 away from the rotating rod 52 is inclined upward. The lower end of the guide shaft is detachably connected to the connector 20, and the upper end of the transmission rod is hinged to the guide shaft through the connector.

[0043] As one implementation, motor 12 is configured as an S9150 servo.

[0044] The S9150 servo motor is lightweight, which makes this application lighter and easier to carry small drones.

[0045] It should be understood that those skilled in the art can make improvements or modifications based on the above description, and all such improvements and modifications should fall within the protection scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. A retractable fishing manipulator for use with unmanned aerial vehicles, characterized in that, It includes a support mechanism that can be installed on the underside of the drone, and a drive mechanism disposed on the support mechanism. A telescopic mechanism that can be freely extended and retracted is vertically connected to the underside of the support mechanism, and a gripper mechanism is disposed at the lower end of the telescopic mechanism. The driving mechanism includes a winding roller rotatably connected to the support mechanism, and a rotating device capable of driving the winding roller, on which a rope is wound. The gripper mechanism includes a mounting frame connected to the lower end of the telescopic mechanism. A plurality of gripper portions are provided along the outer periphery of the lower side of the mounting frame. The upper ends of the gripper portions are hinged to the mounting frame. A guide shaft passes vertically through the mounting frame. The guide shaft is slidably connected to the mounting frame. The upper end of the guide shaft is connected to the rope. A plurality of transmission rods are hinged circumferentially to the lower end of the guide shaft. The plurality of transmission rods correspond one-to-one with the plurality of gripper portions. The end of the transmission rod away from the guide shaft is hinged to the middle of the gripper portion. The guide shaft can move downward under the action of gravity to open the gripper; when the telescopic mechanism is extended to its longest state, the winding roller winds the rope, the guide shaft moves upward along the mounting frame, and the gripper closes. The support mechanism includes a support base, the drive mechanism is mounted on the support base, the upper end of the telescopic mechanism is connected to the support base, and two parallel support rods are detachably connected to the lower side of the support base. The two ends of the support rods are provided with clamp structures that can be connected to the drone. The telescopic mechanism includes several connecting rods that intersect and are hinged to each other to form a telescopic frame structure. The upper end of the telescopic frame structure is hinged to the support base, and the lower end of the telescopic frame structure is hinged to the mounting frame.

2. The retractable fishing manipulator for a drone according to claim 1, characterized in that, A bearing seat is provided on the upper side of the support base, and both ends of the winding roller are rotatably connected to the bearing seat.

3. A retractable fishing manipulator for a drone according to claim 1, characterized in that, The rotating device includes a motor mounted on the support base, the motor being connected to a worm gear, and a worm wheel that cooperates with the worm gear being fixedly connected to one end of the winding roller.

4. A retractable fishing manipulator for a drone according to claim 3, characterized in that, The motor is configured as an S9150 servo motor.

5. A retractable fishing manipulator for a drone according to claim 1, characterized in that, The connecting rod is made of nylon, the mass of the connecting rod is 2.5 to 3.0g, and the length of the telescopic mechanism is 100mm to 400mm.

6. A retractable fishing manipulator for a drone according to claim 1, characterized in that, The gripper mechanism is made of polyoxymethylene and its mass is less than 280g.

7. A retractable fishing manipulator for a drone according to claim 6, characterized in that, The gripper includes a clamping block and two parallel rotating rods of equal length. The upper end of the rotating rod is hinged to the mounting bracket, and the lower end of the rotating rod is hinged to the clamping block. The end of the transmission rod away from the guide shaft is hinged to the middle of one of the rotating rods.

8. A retractable fishing manipulator for a drone according to claim 7, characterized in that, The mounting frame includes a first mounting plate and a second mounting plate arranged vertically. The first mounting plate is fixedly connected to the second mounting plate via a first connecting post. Both the first and second mounting plates are provided with through holes through which the rope passes. A fixed plate is provided on the lower side of the second mounting plate. The guide shaft passes vertically through the center of the fixed plate and is slidably connected to the fixed plate. Several side plates are fixedly connected along the circumference of the fixed plate. The upper side of the side plates is fixedly connected to the second mounting plate via a second connecting post. The upper end of the rotating rod is hinged to the lower side of the side plate.

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