Cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to unmanned aerial vehicles and control method thereof

Abstract

The present application proposes a cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to unmanned aerial vehicles and a control method thereof, wherein the rope-dropping winch includes: a motor drive unit, a gear transmission unit, a reel unit and a decoupling unit, the reel unit includes a reel, a rope and a line-out structure, the first end of the reel is driven by the motor drive unit, and the second end of the reel is connected to the gear transmission unit; the line-out structure includes a line-out slider and a twisted shaft, the twisted shaft is located between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit, the middle part of the line-out slider is threadedly connected to the twisted shaft, and the first end of the twisted shaft is driven to rotate by the gear transmission unit; a rope through hole is provided on the line-out slider, and the free end of the rope passes through the rope through hole to connect to the decoupling unit; the line-out slider reciprocates along the pin shaft through the reciprocating texture on the twisted shaft to realize the automatic line arrangement function of the rope.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of rope-dropping devices, and in particular to a cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle and a control method thereof. Background Art

[0002] Drone cargo transportation has developed rapidly in recent years and has been applied to medical supplies distribution, express delivery services, disaster relief assistance and other fields. Currently, most drone logistics transportation systems on the market use container solutions, that is, a cargo compartment is installed under the belly of the drone. This solution requires the cargo to have a regular shape, and the drone must land on the ground to complete the delivery. This not only limits the flexibility of transportation, but also poses a safety hazard to the drone and the environment around it.

[0003] The rope-dropping winch technology has significant advantages in the precise delivery of goods by drones, and is particularly suitable for scenarios with complex terrain, inconvenient transportation, or where precise delivery is required. The rope-dropping winch technology can achieve precise delivery of goods without the need for drones to land, which helps to improve the efficiency and safety of cargo transportation while reducing transportation costs. However, existing rope-dropping winches usually wind the rope in a random manner, which can easily cause the end of the rope to get tangled or the rope to come out of the winding wheel, thereby increasing the risk of the rope getting tangled and knotted. Moreover, existing rope-dropping winches cannot accurately calculate and control the length of the rope being lowered, making it difficult to meet the needs of high-altitude operations or environments that require precise operations. Summary of the invention

[0004] The present application aims to solve one of the technical problems in the related art at least to some extent.

[0005] To this end, the first purpose of the present application is to propose a cargo transport rope-lowering winch for use in drones to achieve the automatic cable arrangement function of the rope, thereby solving the problems in the related technology of the risk of rope entanglement and the inability to accurately adjust the rope length.

[0006] The second objective of the present application is to provide a control method for a cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle.

[0007] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the first embodiment of the present application proposes a cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to a drone, comprising a motor drive unit, a gear transmission unit, a wire wheel unit and a decoupling unit, wherein the motor drive unit comprises a motor and a PCB circuit board, wherein the PCB circuit board is electrically connected to the motor; a microcontroller and a wireless communication module are configured on the PCB circuit board, wherein the microcontroller and the wireless communication module are connected, and wherein the wireless communication module is used to communicate with a remote controller;

[0008] The reel unit comprises a reel, a rope and a wire outlet structure, wherein the first end of the reel is driven by the motor, and the second end of the reel is connected to the gear transmission unit; the wire outlet structure comprises a wire outlet slider and a twisted shaft, wherein the twisted shaft is located between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit, and the first end of the twisted shaft is driven to rotate by the gear transmission unit; the middle portion of the wire outlet slider is threadedly connected to the twisted shaft, and the two ends of the wire outlet slider are respectively slidably connected to the two pins between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit, and a rope through hole is provided on the wire outlet slider;

[0009] The rope is wound around the wheel, and the free end of the rope passes through the rope through hole to connect to the unhooking unit; the wire outlet slider is configured so that when the twist shaft rotates, the wire outlet slider reciprocates along the pin shaft through the reciprocating grooves on the twist shaft to achieve regular winding of the rope.

[0010] In some implementations, the gear transmission unit includes a right carbon plate, main teeth, intermediate transmission teeth and twisted shaft teeth, the gear shafts of the main teeth, intermediate transmission teeth and twisted shaft teeth are connected to the first surface of the right carbon plate, the main gear of the main teeth is nested in the spool end plate fixedly connected to the second end of the spool, the intermediate transmission teeth are meshed with the twisted shaft teeth, and the gear drive of the twisted shaft teeth is connected to the twisted shaft.

[0011] In some implementations, the motor drive unit also includes a left carbon plate and a motor cover, the motor, the PCB circuit board and the motor cover are all installed on the first surface of the left carbon plate, and the motor and the PCB circuit board are both located in the space formed by the motor cover and the left carbon plate; two power supply ports are configured at one end of the motor cover, the output shaft of the motor is fixedly connected to the first end of the reel, and the PCB circuit board is electrically connected to the motor.

[0012] In some implementations, the cargo transport rope lowering winch also includes a rising buffer unit, which includes a buffer spring, a buffer plate and at least two electromagnets, the bottom end of the buffer spring is connected to the unhooking unit, the upper part of the buffer spring is connected to the buffer plate, and the at least two electromagnets are respectively fixed to the lower part of the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit.

[0013] In some implementations, the dehooking unit includes a mechanical automatic dehooking device and a counterweight ring, the top end of the mechanical automatic dehooking device is connected to the free end of the rope, and the middle part of the mechanical automatic dehooking device is connected to the counterweight ring through a crossbeam.

[0014] In some implementations, the UAV loading unit includes an upper fixed plate, a quick-release plate, a slide rail structure, an upper hanger and a quick-release pin. The upper fixed plate is installed at the top between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit. The upper surface of the upper fixed plate is installed with the slide rail structure through the quick-release plate. The upper hanger is slidably installed on the slide rail structure. A fixing hole for fixing the UAV is provided on the sliding top of the upper hanger; the quick-release pin is installed on one side of the slide rail structure to fix the upper hanger.

[0015] In some implementations, the cargo transport rope lowering winch also includes a fuse unit, which includes a fuse-actuating electric cylinder, an electric cylinder fixed shaft, a fuse structure and a fuse resistor. The fuse-actuating electric cylinder is connected between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit through the electric cylinder fixed shaft. The fuse structure is installed on the top of the fuse-actuating electric cylinder, and the fuse resistor is fixed on the fuse structure. The fuse-actuating electric cylinder is configured to fuse the rope through the fuse resistor according to the instructions of the microcontroller on the PCB circuit board to achieve emergency rope breaking.

[0016] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the second embodiment of the present application proposes a control method for a cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to a drone, wherein the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to the drone is the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to the drone described in the first aspect; the method comprises:

[0017] In response to receiving a descending instruction, controlling the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate at a first speed to lower the rope, while monitoring the motor current value of the motor drive unit;

[0018] Based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope and the height of the UAV from the ground, a first target encoder value is obtained when the height of the free end of the rope from the ground meets a first height;

[0019] When the encoder data reaches the first target encoder value, reducing the rotation speed of the motor drive unit according to a first rule;

[0020] When the motor current value satisfies the first current condition, or when the encoder data reaches the second target encoder value, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working; wherein, the second target encoder value is the encoder value corresponding to when the length of the lowering rope reaches the height of the UAV from the ground.

[0021] In some implementations, the method further includes:

[0022] In response to receiving the ascending instruction, controlling the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate at a second speed to retract the rope;

[0023] Based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope, a third target encoder value is obtained when the length of the lowering rope meets the second length;

[0024] When the encoder data reaches the third target encoder value, reducing the rotation speed of the motor drive unit according to a second rule;

[0025] In response to receiving an electromagnet signal generated when the buffer plate contacts the electromagnet, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working.

[0026] In some implementations,

[0027] The method uses a first formula to express the corresponding relationship between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope, and the first formula is expressed as follows: , where: Ldown is the length of the lowered rope; Ldown0 is the total rope length corresponding to the lowered turns; Lcc is the total rope length of the current turn; Vccode is the code value corresponding to the required total rope length; Vucode is the motor encoder value corresponding to the previous turn; m is the encoder value corresponding to the first turn.

[0028] In some implementations, the method further includes:

[0029] During the lowering process of the rope, when the motor current value meets the second current condition, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working and an anti-entanglement reminder is output.

[0030] The cargo transport rope-dropping winch and control method for unmanned aerial vehicles provided in the present application drives the line wheel to rotate through a motor, thereby realizing the lowering and retracting of the rope. When the line wheel rotates, the gear meshing design drives the line-out slider to reciprocate along the pin shaft through the twisted shaft transmission, thereby realizing the reciprocating motion of the rope and the automatic line arrangement function. By realizing the automatic line arrangement, the length and regularity of the rope can be increased. The automatic line arrangement function makes the rope more regular during the process of retracting and releasing, and it will not easily get entangled with each other, thereby effectively increasing the effective rope length that can be operated and avoiding the problem of rope entanglement and knotting. In addition, the automatic cable arrangement function of the rope can improve the accuracy of rope length adjustment. Based on the automatic cable arrangement function of the rope, the correspondence between the motor encoder value and the length of the lowering rope can be obtained, so as to get the encoder value according to the required lowering rope length when close to the ground or close to the top of the rope capstan, and then adjust the motor speed according to the encoder value, so as to control the lifting and lowering speed of the rope, prevent the cargo from touching the ground and being damaged during descent, and stop at the bottom, or damage the equipment when the rope is retracted, so as to realize one-key release and one-key throwing functions, thereby realizing safe, reliable and convenient cargo delivery and lifting, especially in high-altitude operations or environments requiring precise operations, its advantages are more significant.

[0031] Additional aspects and advantages of the present application will be given in part in the description below, and in part will become apparent from the description below, or will be learned through the practice of the present application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0032] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present application will become apparent and easily understood from the following description of the embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0033] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of a cargo transport rope lowering winch provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0034] Figure 2 A front view of a cargo transport rope lowering winch provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0035] Figure 3 A structural diagram of a wire wheel unit provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0036] Figure 4 A structural diagram of a gear transmission unit provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0037] Figure 5 A structural diagram of a motor drive unit provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0038] Figure 6 A structural diagram of a fuse function part provided in an embodiment of the present application;

[0039] Figure 7A flow chart of a method for controlling a cargo transport rope lowering winch provided in one embodiment of the present application;

[0040] Figure 8 A flowchart of a method for controlling a cargo transport rope lowering winch provided in another embodiment of the present application.

[0041] In the figure:

[0042] 1-motor drive unit, 11-left carbon plate, 12-motor, 13-PCB circuit board, 14-motor cover, 2-gear transmission unit, 21-right carbon plate, 22-main gear, 23-intermediate transmission gear, 24-twisted shaft gear, 3-reel unit, 31-reel, 32-rope, 33-outlet slider, 34-twisted shaft, 35-pin shaft, 36-rope through hole, 4-unhooking unit, 41-mechanical automatic unhooking device, 42-counterweight ring, 5-UAV loading unit, 51-upper fixed plate, 52-quick release plate, 53-slide rail structure, 54-upper pendant, 55-quick release pin, 61-fuse actuator electric cylinder, 62-electric cylinder fixed shaft, 63-fuse structure, 64-fuse resistance wire, 7-lighting unit, 81-buffer plate, 82-buffer spring. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0043] The embodiments of the present application are described in detail below, and examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals throughout represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are intended to be used to explain the present application, and should not be construed as limiting the present application.

[0044] The following describes a cargo transport rope lowering winch applied to a drone and a control method thereof according to an embodiment of the present application with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0045] Figures 1 to 6 The present invention provides a structural schematic diagram of a cargo transport rope-dropping winch for use in a drone, provided in an embodiment of the present invention. The cargo transport rope-dropping winch for use in a drone comprises a motor drive unit 1, a gear transmission unit 2, a wire wheel unit 3, a decoupling unit 4, and a drone loading unit 5, wherein the drone loading unit 5 is installed between the motor drive unit 1 and the gear transmission unit 2.

[0046] The motor drive unit 1 includes a motor 12 and a PCB circuit board 13, wherein the PCB circuit board 13 is electrically connected to the motor 12; a microcontroller and a wireless communication module are configured on the PCB circuit board 13, wherein the microcontroller and the wireless communication module are connected, and the wireless communication module is used to communicate with a remote control.

[0047] The wire wheel unit 3 comprises a wire wheel 31, a rope 32 and a wire outlet structure, wherein the wire wheel 31 is located between the motor drive unit 1 and the gear transmission unit 2, wherein a first end of the wire wheel 31 is driven by the motor drive unit 1, and a second end of the wire wheel 31 is connected to the gear transmission unit 2;

[0048] The wire outlet structure includes a wire outlet slider 33 and a twisted shaft 34, wherein the twisted shaft 34 is located between the motor drive unit 1 and the gear transmission unit 2, the middle portion of the wire outlet slider 33 is threadedly connected to the twisted shaft 34, and the two ends of the wire outlet slider 33 are respectively slidably connected to two pins 35 between the motor drive unit 1 and the gear transmission unit 2; the first end of the twisted shaft 34 is driven to rotate by the gear transmission unit 2;

[0049] The rope 32 is wound around the reel 31, and a rope through hole 36 is provided on the wire outlet slider 33. The free end of the rope 32 passes through the rope through hole 36 to connect with the unhooking unit 4; the wire outlet slider 33 is configured so that when the gear transmission unit 2 drives the twisted shaft 34 to rotate, the wire outlet slider 33 reciprocates along the pin shaft 35 through the reciprocating grooves on the twisted shaft 34 to achieve regular winding of the rope 32.

[0050] It should be noted that the twisted shaft is also called a reciprocating screw, which is a screw that can make the slider on it realize reciprocating motion without changing the rotation direction of the main shaft. The principle is that through the rotation of the reciprocating screw, the side of the spiral groove of the twisted shaft is used to push the slider (the slider is usually crescent-shaped) placed in the spiral groove to make axial reciprocating motion. Therefore, the twisted shaft of this embodiment is equipped with an outlet slider, the motor drives the twisted shaft to make a unidirectional main shaft turning motion, and the outlet slider reciprocates on the twisted shaft based on the reciprocating lines on the twisted shaft.

[0051] Optionally, both ends of the wire-outgoing slider 33 are respectively penetrated on two pin shafts 35 . For example, both ends of the wire-outgoing slider 33 are respectively penetrated on two pin shafts 35 through through holes.

[0052] Thus, the cargo transport rope lowering winch can be installed on the drone through the drone loading unit 5, and the two ends of the line-out slider 33 are fixed by the pin shaft 35. The middle part of the line-out slider 33 reciprocates left and right through the reciprocating grooves on the twisted shaft 34, thereby driving the rope 32 to reciprocate and wrap around the reel 31.

[0053] It should be noted that the rope is usually wound randomly, which can easily cause the rope end to get tangled or the rope to come out of the winding wheel, thereby increasing the risk of tangling. Compared with the usual random winding method, this embodiment realizes the automatic arranging function of the rope by driving the rope to move back and forth, which can effectively avoid the problem of rope tangling and knotting.

[0054] The cargo transport rope-lowering winch applied to drones in the embodiment of the present application drives the line wheel to rotate through a motor, thereby realizing the lowering and retracting of the rope. When the line wheel rotates, the gear meshing design drives the line-out slider to reciprocate along the pin shaft through the twisted shaft transmission, thereby realizing the reciprocating motion of the rope and the automatic line arrangement function. By realizing automatic line arrangement, the winding length and regularity can be increased. The automatic line arrangement function makes the rope more regular during the process of retracting and releasing, and it will not easily get entangled with each other, thereby effectively increasing the effective rope length that can be operated and avoiding the problem of rope entanglement and knotting. In addition, the automatic line arrangement function of the rope can improve the accuracy of rope length adjustment. Through the regular rope winding design, the released length of the rope can be accurately calculated and controlled, especially in high-altitude operations or environments that require precise operation, the advantages are more significant. Based on the accuracy of rope length adjustment, the bottoming stop can be achieved, and wireless communication with the remote control can be carried out through the wireless communication module of the PCB circuit board, so that functions such as one-key cargo release and one-key throwing can be realized.

[0055] In some embodiments, the motor drive unit 1 includes a left carbon plate 11, a motor 12, a motor cover 14 and a PCB circuit board 13. The motor 12, the PCB circuit board 13 and the motor cover 14 are all installed on the first surface of the left carbon plate 11, and the motor 12 and the PCB circuit board 13 are both located in the space formed by the motor cover 14 and the left carbon plate 11; one end of the motor cover 14 is configured with two power supply ports, the output shaft of the motor 12 is fixedly connected to the first end of the reel, and the PCB circuit board 13 is electrically connected to the motor 12. Wherein, the PCB circuit board 13 includes an MCU microcontroller.

[0056] Optionally, the two power supply ports are a high-voltage 48V port and a low-voltage 24V port.

[0057] Therefore, the power supply module of the drone can be connected through the power supply port to obtain electric energy; the operating state of the motor 12 is controlled by the PCB circuit board 13 to achieve the rotation of the wire wheel driven by the motor 12.

[0058] In some embodiments, the gear transmission unit 2 includes a right carbon plate 21, a main tooth 22, an intermediate transmission tooth 23 and a twisted shaft tooth 24, the gear shafts of the main tooth 22, the intermediate transmission tooth 23 and the twisted shaft tooth 24 are connected to the first surface of the right carbon plate 21, the main gear of the main tooth 22 is nested in the spool end plate fixedly connected to the second end of the spool, the intermediate transmission tooth 23 is meshed with the twisted shaft tooth 24, and the gear drive of the twisted shaft tooth 24 is connected to the twisted shaft 34.

[0059] Therefore, the main gear of the main tooth 22 is nested in the spool end plate fixedly connected to the second end of the spool. When the motor 12 drives the spool to rotate, the main tooth 22 can obtain the driving force transmitted by the spool, and transmit the driving force to the twist shaft tooth 24 through the intermediate transmission tooth 23, thereby driving the twist shaft 34 to rotate.

[0060] In some embodiments, the wire wheel, the twisted shaft 34, and the pin shaft 35 are all located between the left carbon plate 11 and the right carbon plate 21, and the motor cover 14 and the gear cover of the gear transmission unit 2 are fixed to the left carbon plate 11 and the right carbon plate 21 by screws respectively.

[0061] In some embodiments, the cargo transport rope lowering winch also includes a rising buffer unit, which includes a buffer spring 82, a buffer plate 81 and at least two electromagnets. The bottom end of the buffer spring 82 is connected to the unhooking unit 4, and the upper part of the buffer spring 82 is connected to the buffer plate 81. The at least two electromagnets are respectively fixed to the lower part of the motor drive unit 1 and the gear transmission unit 2.

[0062] Therefore, during the rope retraction process, the MCU microcontroller detects that the unhooking unit 4 has reached the top through the electromagnet signal emitted when the buffer plate 81 contacts the electromagnet, and controls the motor 12 to stop working to prevent the unhooking unit 4 from continuing to rise and damaging the winch.

[0063] In some embodiments, the unhooking unit 4 includes a mechanical automatic unhooking device 41 and a counterweight ring 42, the top end of the mechanical automatic unhooking device 41 is connected to the free end of the rope, and the middle part of the mechanical automatic unhooking device 41 is connected to the counterweight ring 42 through a crossbeam.

[0064] Thus, the center of gravity of the mechanical automatic unhooking device 41 is balanced by the counterweight ring 42, so that the unhooking unit 4 is more stable during the lifting process; after the goods carried on the mechanical automatic unhooking device 41 fall to the ground, the mechanical automatic unhooking device 41 automatically opens to place the goods.

[0065] In some embodiments, the cargo transport rope lowering winch also includes a drone loading unit 5, which includes an upper fixing plate 51, a quick-release plate 52, a slide rail structure 53, an upper hanging piece 54 and a quick-release pin 55. The upper fixing plate 51 is installed at the top between the motor drive unit 1 and the gear transmission unit 2. The upper fixing plate 51 is fixedly connected to the quick-release plate 52 by bolts, and the quick-release pin 55 is installed in the slide rail structure 53 through a threaded hole. The upper hanging piece 54 and the slide rail structure 53 are fixed by reserved screw holes to form a quick-release assembly. The quick-release assembly is installed in the quick-release plate 52 by push-pull mode, and the position is locked by the quick-release pin 55 to complete the installation. The top of the upper hanging piece 54 is provided with a fixing hole for fixing the drone.

[0066] Optionally, the upper fixing plate 51 is fixedly installed between the top of the left carbon plate 11 and the right carbon plate 21 by three M3 screws on one side, the quick-release plate 52 is installed on the upper fixing plate 51 by two M4 screws, and the upper hanger 54 is installed on the drone by two M5 screws.

[0067] Therefore, when the UAV is mounted, the rope lowering winch can be fixed to the lower part of the belly of the UAV through the upper hanging part 54 .

[0068] In some embodiments, the cargo transport rope lowering winch also includes a fuse unit, which includes a fuse-actuating electric cylinder 61, an electric cylinder fixed shaft 62, a fuse structure 63 and a fuse resistor 64. The fuse-actuating electric cylinder 61 is connected between the motor drive unit 1 and the gear transmission unit 2 through the electric cylinder fixed shaft 62. The fuse structure 63 is installed on the top of the fuse-actuating electric cylinder 61, and the fuse resistor 64 is fixed on the fuse structure 63. The fuse-actuating electric cylinder 61 is configured to fuse the rope through the fuse resistor 64 according to the instruction of the drone.

[0069] Optionally, a fuse battery compartment is provided on the upper part of the gear cover, in which a 1S (1S means one cell, and the voltage of one lithium battery is 3.7V) lithium battery is placed, and a battery compartment cover is provided on the surface of the battery compartment to close the battery compartment. Thus, the lithium battery can be used to increase the power of the fuse unit.

[0070] Therefore, when a fault occurs, the microcontroller controls the fuse actuator 61 to extend the push rod, and the push rod pushes the fuse structure 63, so that the fuse resistor 64 contacts the rope, so that the rope is melted by the fuse resistor 64.

[0071] In some embodiments, the cargo transport rope lowering winch further includes a lighting unit, and the lighting unit includes an LED lamp and a lampshade, and the LED lamp and the lampshade are installed between the lower parts of the left carbon plate 11 and the right carbon plate 21.

[0072] Therefore, LED lights can provide lighting when the light is poor or at night.

[0073] The working process of the cargo transport rope lowering winch applied to the UAV in the above embodiment is described below.

[0074] The working process of the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to the drone in the embodiment of the present application includes:

[0075] Installation process of the rope-dropping winch: fix the rope-dropping winch to the lower part of the belly of the drone through the drone loading unit and supply power to the rope-dropping winch; realize wireless control of the rope-dropping winch through the remote control.

[0076] Cargo hoisting process: send a one-button ascending command through the remote control, and send an ascending command through the drone's remote control to retract the rope. When the rope is about 0.5m away from the rope-dropping winch (that is, the length of the lowered rope is about 0.5m), gradually reduce the ascending speed. After reaching the top, the buffer plate contacts the electromagnet, and the information that the cargo has reached the top is transmitted to the PCB circuit board through the electromagnet signal. The microcontroller of the PCB circuit board sends a stop command to the motor to stop the motor from rotating, and the rope retracting action ends. When the cargo reaches the top, the drone will execute the drone's flight route and go to the designated cargo delivery point.

[0077] Cargo lowering process: After arriving at the delivery point, the remote control triggers a one-button cargo release command to automatically lower the rope. The rope-lowering winch obtains the height of the drone from the ground detected in real time by the drone radar. When the rope is about 1m close to the ground (that is, the cargo drops to about 1m from the ground), it gradually descends and the cargo lands gently. When the mechanical automatic unhooker reaches the ground, it automatically stops lowering the rope by monitoring the current value of the motor, and the mechanical automatic unhooker automatically opens to lower the cargo; after the cargo is released, a one-button rise command is issued to automatically execute the cargo lifting process.

[0078] Based on the above embodiments, the present application also provides a control method for a cargo transport rope lowering winch applied to a drone, such as Figure 5 As shown, the control method includes the following contents:

[0079] Step S101, in response to receiving a descending instruction, controlling the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate at a first speed to lower the rope, while monitoring the motor current value of the motor drive unit.

[0080] It should be noted that the executor of the control method of the embodiment of the present application is a microcontroller configured on the PCB circuit board of the cargo transport rope lowering winch.

[0081] A descending command is sent to the microcontroller via the remote controller. The microcontroller receives the descending command and controls the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate at a first speed to lower the rope, while monitoring the motor current value of the motor drive unit.

[0082] Step S102, based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope and the height of the drone from the ground, a first target encoder value is obtained when the height of the free end of the rope from the ground meets the first height.

[0083] In some embodiments, the corresponding relationship between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope is expressed by the following formula:

[0084] (Formula 1)

[0085] in:

[0086] Ldown: length of lowering rope;

[0087] Ldown0: total rope length corresponding to the lowered turns (check the encoder-rope length data table);

[0088] Lcc: total rope length of the current turn (check encoder-rope length data table);

[0089] Vccode: The encoder value corresponding to the required lowering rope length (check the encoder-rope length data table);

[0090] Vucode: the motor encoder value corresponding to the previous turn (check the encoder-rope length data table);

[0091] m is the encoder value corresponding to the first turn, for example, m It is 16956. It should be noted here that, since the rope lowering winch in the embodiment of the present application realizes the automatic regular arrangement function of the rope, the rope is regularly arranged on the line wheel, and thus, there is a corresponding relationship between the encoder value and the length of the lowered rope. The encoder value can be obtained according to the required length of the lowered rope by formula 1, and the lowered rope length can also be calculated by formula 1 according to the collected encoder value.

[0092] Exemplarily, the table of encoder values ​​and corresponding rope length data structures is as follows:

[0093] Table 1: Encoder-rope length data table

[0094]

[0095] It can be seen that based on Table 1 combined with Formula 1, the corresponding relationship between the encoder value and the lowering rope length can be obtained, so that the corresponding encoder value can be obtained according to the required lowering rope length, and the lowering rope length that has been lowered can also be obtained according to the current encoder value.

[0096] As an implementation method, the height of the drone from the ground is obtained by using a radar on the drone, and the height of the drone from the ground is obtained by communicating with the drone control system through a controller.

[0097] As an implementation method, after the UAV reaches the destination and hovers, the height of the UAV from the ground is obtained, the difference between the height of the UAV from the ground and the first height is calculated, and the required length of the lowering rope is obtained; based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope and the required length of the lowering rope, the first target encoder value is calculated.

[0098] For example, the first height is 0.5 meters, and the height of the drone from the ground (H radar) is 25 meters. The required length of the lowering rope is H radar - 0.5 meters = 24.5 meters. According to Table 1, 24.5 meters is between seven full turns and less than eight turns in Table 1. According to Formula 1, the encoder value corresponding to 24.5 meters is calculated = (2450-2373) 16956 / 407+118692 = 121899, that is, the first target encoder value is 121899.

[0099] Step S103, when the encoder data reaches the first target encoder value, the rotation speed of the motor drive unit is reduced according to the first rule.

[0100] In some embodiments, the first rule includes a speed regulation frequency, a speed regulation amplitude, and a speed regulation cutoff condition, and the speed regulation cutoff condition may be the number of speed regulation times or a speed regulation threshold.

[0101] Exemplarily, the first rule includes reducing the speed once every 200ms, with a reduction of 0.04m / s, for 5 times. For example, the initial descent speed is 0.3m / s, and when it is 0.5m from the ground, it starts to decelerate, and the speed is reduced by 0.04m / s every 200ms, for 5 times, and the final bottoming speed is 0.1m / s.

[0102] That is to say, when the height of the free end of the rope (ie, the end of the rope or the unhooking unit) from the ground meets the first height, the set speed of the motor is adjusted to a slow speed through the MCU to slow down the speed of the cargo descending.

[0103] For example, when the length of the lowering rope is 24.5 meters, the encoder value is 121899, and the equipment is 0.5 meters from the ground, the speed of the motor is automatically adjusted to slow.

[0104] In some embodiments, during the rope lowering process, when the motor current value meets the second current condition, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working and an anti-entanglement reminder is output.

[0105] It can be understood that after receiving the descending command, the motor runs at the set speed. The speed and torque can be considered constant during normal descent. The microprocessor MCU monitors the motor current I0 in real time to be a stable value. The descending operating current I0∈ (the symbol indicates belonging to) descending current model I down Once the back-entanglement occurs, the torque direction of the motor changes, and the real-time monitored motor current I0 changes. The data I that falls into the back-entanglement model twine In the above equation, I0∈I twine , MCU sends a stop command, the motor stops rotating, and the reverse winding is prevented from continuing to occur. At the same time, the MCU outputs the reverse winding status through the communication port to remind the operator to check.

[0106] Anti-rewinding design algorithm example 1:

[0107] The following is an example of data based on a 12S (12S means 12 lithium batteries connected in series, with a total voltage of 3.7V x 12 = 44.4V) battery power supply and a speed of 0.3m / s.

[0108] Table 2: Falling current

[0109]

[0110] Table 3: Current when reverse winding occurs

[0111]

[0112] It can be seen from the above data that when the equipment is lowered with 10kg of cargo mounted on it, the collected motor phase current is between 2.5A and 2.7A. During the descent, the equipment collects the motor phase current in real time and compares it with the previous moment. For example, if the motor phase current was 2.6A at the previous moment during the descent and is 3A at this moment, it is determined that back-entanglement has occurred, the motor stops running, and a status reminder is given.

[0113] Step S104, when the motor current value meets the first current condition, or when the encoder data reaches the second target encoder value, control the motor drive unit to stop working; wherein the second target encoder value is the encoder value corresponding to when the length of the lowering rope reaches the height of the drone from the ground.

[0114] For example, according to Table 1 and Formula 1, the encoder value corresponding to 25 meters = 118692 + 16956 / 407 (2500-2373) = 123982. When the encoder value reaches 123982, the motor phase current is detected to be between 0.01A and 0.05A during this period, which is considered to be bottoming out. The motor stops running and the cargo is safely bottoming out.

[0115] It should be noted that landing and touching the bottom are the same concept. When the goods fall to the ground, the DC bus current is 0.5A~0.7A. At this time, the motor phase current is between 0.01A~0.05A.

[0116] Therefore, the control method of the embodiment of the present application can realize a one-key safe bottoming function.

[0117] The above describes the control method of the descending process, and the following describes the control method of the ascending process.

[0118] The present application also provides another control method for a cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to a drone, such as Figure 6 As shown, the control method includes the following contents:

[0119] Step S201, in response to receiving the ascending instruction, controlling the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate at a second speed to retract the rope.

[0120] Step S202, based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope, obtain a third target encoder value when the length of the lowering rope meets the second length.

[0121] Step S203, when the encoder data reaches the third target encoder value, the rotation speed of the motor drive unit is reduced according to the second rule.

[0122] For example, the second rule is to reduce the speed once every 200ms, with a reduction of 0.04m / s, for 5 times. For example, the initial rising speed is 0.3m / s, and when the distance is about 0.5m, it starts to decelerate, and the speed is reduced by 0.04m / s every 200ms, for 5 times, and the final speed is 0.1m / s.

[0123] Step S204, in response to receiving the electromagnet signal generated when the buffer plate contacts the electromagnet, controlling the motor drive unit to stop working.

[0124] The control method of the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle in the embodiment of the present application can obtain the corresponding relationship between the encoder value of the motor and the length of the lowering rope based on the automatic wiring function of the rope, thereby obtaining the encoder value according to the lowering rope length required when close to the ground or close to the top of the rope-dropping winch, and then adjusting the speed of the motor according to the encoder value, thereby controlling the lifting and lowering speed of the rope, preventing the cargo from touching the ground and being damaged during descent, achieving bottoming out and stopping, or damaging the equipment when the rope is retracted, and realizing functions such as one-key cargo release and one-key throwing, thereby achieving safe, reliable and convenient cargo delivery and lifting.

[0125] The present application is expected to provide an implementation scheme for users to selectively block the use or access of personal information data. That is, the present disclosure is expected to provide hardware and / or software to prevent or block access to such personal information data. Once the personal information data is no longer needed, the risk can be minimized by limiting data collection and deleting the data. In addition, when applicable, such personal information is de-identified to protect the privacy of the user.

[0126] In the description of the aforementioned embodiments, the description with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "example", "specific example", or "some examples" etc. means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present application. In this specification, the schematic representations of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner. In addition, those skilled in the art may combine and combine the different embodiments or examples described in this specification and the features of the different embodiments or examples, unless they contradict each other.

[0127] In addition, the terms "first" and "second" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined as "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of this application, the meaning of "plurality" is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

[0128] Any process or method description in a flowchart or otherwise described herein may be understood to represent a module, fragment or portion of code comprising one or more executable instructions for implementing the steps of a custom logical function or process, and the scope of the preferred embodiments of the present application includes alternative implementations in which functions may not be performed in the order shown or discussed, including performing functions in a substantially simultaneous manner or in the reverse order depending on the functions involved, which should be understood by technicians in the technical field to which the embodiments of the present application belong.

[0129] It should be understood that the various parts of the present application can be implemented by hardware, software, firmware or a combination thereof. In the above-mentioned embodiments, multiple steps or methods can be implemented by software or firmware stored in a memory and executed by a suitable instruction execution system. For example, if implemented by hardware, as in another embodiment, it can be implemented by any one of the following technologies known in the art or their combination: a discrete logic circuit having a logic gate circuit for implementing a logic function for a data signal, a dedicated integrated circuit having a suitable combination of logic gate circuits, a programmable gate array (PGA), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), etc.

[0130] A person skilled in the art may understand that all or part of the steps in the method for implementing the above-mentioned embodiment may be completed by instructing related hardware through a program, and the program may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, which, when executed, includes one or a combination of the steps of the method embodiment.

[0131] In addition, each functional unit in each embodiment of the present application may be integrated into a processing module, or each unit may exist physically separately, or two or more units may be integrated into one module. The above-mentioned integrated module may be implemented in the form of hardware or in the form of a software functional module. If the integrated module is implemented in the form of a software functional module and sold or used as an independent product, it may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium.

[0132] The storage medium mentioned above may be a read-only memory, a magnetic disk or an optical disk, etc. Although the embodiments of the present application have been shown and described above, it can be understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and cannot be understood as limiting the present application. A person of ordinary skill in the art may change, modify, replace and modify the above embodiments within the scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A cargo transport rope-dropping winch used in unmanned aerial vehicles, characterized in that: It includes a motor drive unit, a gear transmission unit, a wire wheel unit and a decoupling unit, wherein the motor drive unit includes a motor and a PCB circuit board, wherein the PCB circuit board is electrically connected to the motor; a microcontroller and a wireless communication module are arranged on the PCB circuit board, wherein the microcontroller and the wireless communication module are connected, and wherein the wireless communication module is used to communicate with a remote controller; The reel unit comprises a reel, a rope and a wire outlet structure, wherein the first end of the reel is driven by the motor, and the second end of the reel is connected to the gear transmission unit; the wire outlet structure comprises a wire outlet slider and a twisted shaft, wherein the twisted shaft is located between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit, and the first end of the twisted shaft is driven to rotate by the gear transmission unit; the middle portion of the wire outlet slider is threadedly connected to the twisted shaft, and the two ends of the wire outlet slider are respectively slidably connected to the two pins between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit, and a rope through hole is provided on the wire outlet slider; The rope is wound around the wire wheel, and the free end of the rope passes through the rope through hole to connect to the unhooking unit; the wire outlet slider is configured such that when the twist shaft rotates, the wire outlet slider reciprocates along the pin shaft through the reciprocating lines on the twist shaft to achieve regular winding of the rope; The microcontroller is used to receive a descending instruction, control the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate and lower the rope at a first speed, and monitor the motor current value of the motor drive unit at the same time; Based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope and the height of the UAV from the ground, a first target encoder value is obtained when the height of the free end of the rope from the ground meets a first height; When the encoder data reaches the first target encoder value, reducing the rotation speed of the motor drive unit according to a first rule; When the motor current value satisfies the first current condition, or when the encoder data reaches a second target encoder value, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working; wherein the second target encoder value is an encoder value corresponding to when the length of the lowering rope reaches the height of the drone from the ground; The corresponding relationship between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope is represented by the first formula, and the first formula is expressed as follows: , where: Ldown is the length of the lowered rope; Ldown0 is the total rope length corresponding to the lowered turns; Lcc is the total rope length of the current turn; Vccode is the code value corresponding to the required total rope length; Vucode is the encoder value corresponding to the previous turn; m is the encoder value corresponding to the first turn.

2. The cargo transport rope-dropping winch for unmanned aerial vehicles according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The gear transmission unit includes a right carbon plate, main teeth, intermediate transmission teeth and twisted shaft teeth. The gear shafts of the main teeth, intermediate transmission teeth and twisted shaft teeth are connected to the first surface of the right carbon plate. The main gear of the main teeth is nested in the spool end plate fixedly connected to the second end of the spool. The intermediate transmission teeth are meshed with the twisted shaft teeth. The gear drive of the twisted shaft teeth is connected to the twisted shaft.

3. The cargo transport rope-dropping winch for unmanned aerial vehicles according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The motor drive unit also includes a left carbon plate and a motor cover, the motor, the PCB circuit board and the motor cover are all installed on the first surface of the left carbon plate, and the motor and the PCB circuit board are both located in the space formed by the motor cover and the left carbon plate; two power supply ports are configured at one end of the motor cover, the output shaft of the motor is fixedly connected to the first end of the reel, and the PCB circuit board is electrically connected to the motor.

4. The cargo transport rope-dropping winch for use in unmanned aerial vehicles according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cargo transport rope lowering winch also includes a rising buffer unit, which includes a buffer spring, a buffer plate and at least two electromagnets. The bottom end of the buffer spring is connected to the unhooking unit, and the upper part of the buffer spring is connected to the buffer plate. The at least two electromagnets are respectively fixed to the lower part of the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit.

5. The cargo transport rope-dropping winch for unmanned aerial vehicles according to claim 1, characterized in that: The dehooking unit comprises a mechanical automatic dehooking device and a counterweight ring, the top end of the mechanical automatic dehooking device is connected to the free end of the rope, and the middle part of the mechanical automatic dehooking device is connected to the counterweight ring through a crossbeam.

6. The cargo transport rope-dropping winch for use in unmanned aerial vehicles according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cargo transport rope lowering winch also includes a fuse unit, which includes a fuse-actuating electric cylinder, an electric cylinder fixed shaft, a fuse structure and a fuse resistor. The fuse-actuating electric cylinder is connected between the motor drive unit and the gear transmission unit through the electric cylinder fixed shaft. The fuse structure is installed on the top of the fuse-actuating electric cylinder, and the fuse resistor is fixed on the fuse structure. The fuse-actuating electric cylinder is configured to fuse the rope through the fuse resistor according to the instructions of the microcontroller on the PCB circuit board.

7. A control method for a cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle, characterized in that: The cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to a drone is the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to a drone as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 6; the method comprises: In response to receiving a descending instruction, controlling the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate at a first speed to lower the rope, while monitoring the motor current value of the motor drive unit; Based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope and the height of the UAV from the ground, a first target encoder value is obtained when the height of the free end of the rope from the ground meets a first height; When the encoder data reaches the first target encoder value, reducing the rotation speed of the motor drive unit according to a first rule; When the motor current value satisfies the first current condition, or when the encoder data reaches the second target encoder value, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working; wherein, the second target encoder value is the encoder value corresponding to when the length of the lowering rope reaches the height of the UAV from the ground.

8. The control method of the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 7, characterized in that: The cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to the UAV is the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to the UAV as claimed in claim 4, and the method further comprises: In response to receiving the ascending instruction, controlling the motor drive unit to drive the wire wheel to rotate at a second speed to retract the rope; Based on the correspondence between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope, a third target encoder value is obtained when the length of the lowering rope meets the second length; When the encoder data reaches the third target encoder value, reducing the rotation speed of the motor drive unit according to a second rule; In response to receiving an electromagnet signal generated when the buffer plate contacts the electromagnet, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working.

9. The control method of the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 8, characterized in that: The method uses a first formula to express the corresponding relationship between the encoder value of the motor drive unit and the length of the lowering rope, and the first formula is expressed as follows: , where: Ldown is the length of the lowered rope; Ldown0 is the total rope length corresponding to the lowered turns; Lcc is the total rope length of the current turn; Vccode is the code value corresponding to the required total rope length; Vucode is the encoder value corresponding to the previous turn; m is the encoder value corresponding to the first turn.

10. The control method of the cargo transport rope-dropping winch applied to an unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 7, characterized in that: The method further comprises: During the lowering process of the rope, when the motor current value meets the second current condition, the motor drive unit is controlled to stop working and an anti-entanglement reminder is output.

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