Transmission for unmanned aerial vehicle

Abstract

The present application provides a transmission for unmanned aerial vehicles, wherein the arms driving the propellers can be arranged not to interfere with the air cleaner and radiator. A transmission for unmanned aerial vehicles, wherein the first to fourth arms are located in the upper part of the machine body, the propellers are driven by using an inline four-cylinder engine, the transmission comprises: a driving gear connected to the crankshaft; a clutch shaft driving gear meshing with the driving gear; a bevel gear driving a driving shaft perpendicular to the clutch shaft; a driving shaft base gear driven by the bevel gear; a top gear assembly comprising a driving shaft main gear, a left auxiliary gear meshing with the main gear, a reverse gear meshing with the main gear and a right auxiliary gear meshing with the reverse gear; first and second bevel gears meshing with the left auxiliary gear and driving the first and second arms; and third and fourth bevel gears meshing with the right auxiliary gear and driving the third and fourth arms.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a transmission system for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), and more specifically, to a transmission system for an UAV configured in such a way that a propeller drive arm extending from the fuselage can be prevented from interfering with a radiator or air filter mounted on the upper part of the UAV without requiring a raised arm position. Background Technology

[0002] For example, Patent Document 1 (Japanese Patent No. 6932411) discusses an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) with a two-cylinder engine. When constructing a new type of UAV (quadcopter) with a four-cylinder engine to replace the aircraft's two-cylinder engine, the increased size of the air filter and radiator interferes with the four arms driving the propeller. If the height of the drive shaft is increased to raise the mounting position of the arms, the interference between the arms and the air filter or radiator can be avoided, but the overall height of the fuselage will increase. If the fuselage height is increased, the transportability of the fuselage to the airport and the ability to load cargo and equipment into the lower part of the fuselage will be affected.

[0003] Existing technical documents Patent documents Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent No. 6932411 Summary of the Invention Technical issues In order to overcome the problems of the prior art, the present invention aims to provide a transmission system for unmanned aerial vehicles that allows the propeller drive arm to be configured in a way that prevents interference with air filters or radiators.

[0004] Solution to the problem According to the present invention, a transmission system for an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) is provided, wherein the UAV includes: a fuselage; four arms, namely a first arm, a second arm, a third arm, and a fourth arm, arranged clockwise on the fuselage; propellers disposed at the ends of the respective arms; and an inline four-cylinder engine for driving the propellers. The transmission system includes the following components: Drive gear mounted on the crankshaft of an inline four-cylinder engine; A driven gear mounted on the clutch shaft meshes with the drive gear; A bevel gear mounted on the clutch shaft via a centrifugal clutch drives a drive shaft perpendicular to the clutch shaft. The base gear mounted on the drive shaft is driven by a bevel gear; Top gear assembly, comprising: The main gear mounted on the drive shaft; The left auxiliary gear that meshes with the main gear; The reverse gear that meshes with the main gear; The right auxiliary gear that meshes with the reverse gear; A first bevel gear and a second bevel gear, each bevel gear meshing with a left auxiliary gear, wherein the first bevel gear drives the first arm and the second bevel gear drives the second arm; and The third bevel gear and the fourth bevel gear, each meshing with the right auxiliary gear, wherein the third bevel gear drives the third arm and the fourth bevel gear drives the fourth arm.

[0005] The inline four-cylinder engine is configured with the crankshaft positioned laterally, relative to the left and right sides of the engine block.

[0006] The inline four-cylinder engine is configured with horizontally positioned pistons.

[0007] The air filter is located at the upper front of the unit, and the radiator is located at the upper rear of the unit.

[0008] Beneficial effects of the present invention The transmission system of the unmanned aerial vehicle of the present invention includes a top gear assembly comprising a main gear mounted on a drive shaft, a left auxiliary gear meshing with the main gear, a reverse gear meshing with the main gear, and a right auxiliary gear meshing with the reverse gear. The top gear assembly is configured such that a first and second arm extending to the left rear and left front of the fuselage, respectively, and a third and fourth arm extending to the right front and right rear of the fuselage, respectively, are spaced apart in the lateral direction. The spacing between the first and fourth arms, and between the second and third arms, can be widened to allow air filters and radiators to be placed in these spaces without interfering with the arms.

[0009] The inline four-cylinder engine is configured with the crankshaft positioned laterally, relative to the left and right orientation of the engine block. Compared to a crankshaft configuration with longitudinal orientation, this configuration makes it easier to achieve lateral balance of the engine block.

[0010] The inline four-cylinder engine is configured with horizontally positioned pistons and cylinders, keeping them level, while the crankshaft is positioned laterally. This configuration reduces the engine's height compared to a configuration with vertically positioned pistons and cylinders and a laterally positioned crankshaft.

[0011] Even when the air filter is located at the upper front of the fuselage and the radiator at the upper rear, the arms can be installed without increasing the height of the drive shaft to avoid interference with the air filter and radiator, thus reducing the overall height of the fuselage. In the side view, the second and third arms can be positioned below the top of the air filter. Attached Figure Description

[0012] Figure 1 This is an external view of an unmanned aerial vehicle equipped with the transmission system of the present invention.

[0013] Figure 2It is a perspective view of the fuselage, in which the propeller, arms, canopy, and outriggers have been removed.

[0014] Figure 3 It is a perspective view of the fuselage, in which, Figure 2 The gear assembly on the upper part of the fuselage was exposed by removing the covering parts.

[0015] Figure 4 This is an enlarged perspective view of the transmission system of the present invention.

[0016] Figure 5 yes Figure 3 The diagram shows a perspective view of the fuselage, in which the propeller, arms, and outriggers are mounted.

[0017] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 The diagram shows a plan view of the fuselage.

[0018] Figure 7 yes Figure 5 The left side view of the fuselage shown. Detailed Implementation

[0019] The transmission system 100 of the unmanned aerial vehicle 200 of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0020] Example Figure 1 This is an external view of an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) 200 equipped with the transmission system 100 of the present invention. The UAV 200 has four propellers 6 on the upper part of its fuselage 5. A pair of support legs 38 are provided on the lower part of the fuselage 5, which is covered by a canopy 39. In the plan view of the fuselage 5, the propellers 6 include a first propeller 1, a second propeller 2, a third propeller 3, and a fourth propeller 4 in a clockwise direction. The fuselage 5 also has a first arm 7, a second arm 8, a third arm 9, and a fourth arm 10 arranged approximately diagonally on its upper part, with the propellers 6 mounted at the ends of the respective arms and configured for horizontal rotation. Therefore, the UAV 200 is also referred to as a quadcopter. Each propeller 6 has two blades 6a and is designed to overlap with adjacent propellers and be foldable. All four propellers are located at the same height.

[0021] Figure 2This is a perspective view of the fuselage 5, with the propeller, arms, cover, and outriggers removed. The fuselage 5 includes: an air filter 11 located at the upper front; a radiator 12 located at the upper rear; and a muffler 13 extending rearward. An inline four-cylinder engine 15 is equipped with a transversely positioned crankshaft 14, oriented left-right relative to the fuselage 5. In the figure, the first arm 7, second arm 8, third arm 9, and fourth arm 10 are removed. Therefore, relative to the front of the fuselage 5, the connecting portion 7a of the first arm 7 protrudes to the left rearward, the connecting portion 8a of the second arm 8 protrudes to the left frontward, the connecting portion 9a of the third arm 9 protrudes to the right frontward, and the connecting portion 10a of the fourth arm 10 protrudes to the right rearward.

[0022] Figure 3 This is a perspective view of fuselage 5, with the covering parts removed. Figure 2 The gear assembly on the upper part of the fuselage 5 is exposed. The bases of the connecting portions 7a of the first arm 7 protruding to the left rear and the connecting portions 8a of the second arm 8 protruding to the left front are configured to be laterally separated from the bases of the connecting portions 9a of the third arm 9 protruding to the right front and the connecting portions 10a of the fourth arm 10 protruding to the right rear relative to the forward direction of the fuselage 5. This configuration prevents the first arm 7 and the fourth arm 10 protruding to the left rear from colliding with the radiator 12. Similarly, the second arm 8 protruding to the left front and the first arm 9 protruding to the right front can also be configured to prevent them from colliding with the air filter 11.

[0023] Figure 4 This is an enlarged perspective view of the transmission system 100 of the present invention. The first propeller 1, second propeller 2, third propeller 3, and fourth propeller 4 are driven by an inline four-cylinder engine 15. The inline four-cylinder engine 15 includes a first piston 16, a second piston 17, a third piston 18, and a fourth piston 19. Each piston is horizontally positioned, which helps to reduce the height of the fuselage 5. The crankshaft 14 is laterally positioned and oriented left-right relative to the fuselage 5. The crankshaft 14 rotates due to the intake, compression, combustion, and exhaust movements of each piston. The crankshaft 14 is provided with a drive gear 20 that rotates together with the crankshaft 14.

[0024] The crankshaft 14 is equipped with a horizontally aligned clutch shaft 23, which has a driven gear 21 that meshes with the drive gear 20. When the rotation of the driven gear 21 becomes constant, an internal centrifugal clutch 22 within the driven gear 21 engages, driving a follower gear 37 to rotate, which in turn causes a bevel gear 24 mounted on the clutch shaft 23 to rotate. The rotation of the bevel gear 24 drives a base gear 26 mounted on a vertical drive shaft 25 perpendicular to the clutch shaft 23 to rotate. The rotation of the base gear 26 then drives a master gear 27 mounted on the drive shaft 25 to rotate.

[0025] The rotation of the main gear 27 drives the left auxiliary gear 28, which is mounted on the left auxiliary drive shaft 29 and meshes with the main gear 27, to rotate. Simultaneously, the reverse gear 30, which also meshes with the main gear 27, rotates. The rotation of the reverse gear 30 drives the right auxiliary gear 31, which is mounted on the right auxiliary drive shaft 32 and meshes with the reverse gear 30, to rotate. The main gear 27, left auxiliary gear 28, reverse gear 30, and right auxiliary gear 31 are collectively referred to as the top gear assembly 40. The driving force can be distributed between the left auxiliary gear 28 and the right auxiliary gear 31 to drive the arms, rather than directly driving the first to fourth arms from the main gear 27.

[0026] The rotation of the left auxiliary gear 28 then drives the first bevel gear 33, which meshes with the left auxiliary gear 28, to rotate, thereby driving the first arm 7. Similarly, the rotation of the left auxiliary gear 28 drives the second bevel gear 34, which meshes with the left auxiliary gear 28, to rotate, thereby driving the second arm 8. The rotation of the right auxiliary gear 31 drives the third bevel gear 35, which meshes with the right auxiliary gear 31, to rotate, thereby driving the third arm 9. Likewise, the rotation of the right auxiliary gear 31 drives the fourth bevel gear 36, which meshes with the right auxiliary gear 31, to rotate, thereby driving the fourth arm 10.

[0027] Figure 5 yes Figure 3 The diagram shows a perspective view of the fuselage 5, in which the propeller, arms, and outriggers are mounted. As shown, the first arm 7 protruding to the left rear and the fourth arm 10 protruding to the right rear can be configured not to interfere with the radiator 12. Similarly, the second arm 8 protruding to the left front and the third arm 9 protruding to the right front can be configured not to interfere with the air filter 11.

[0028] Figure 6 yes Figure 5 The diagram shows a plan view of the fuselage 5. As shown, a top gear assembly 40 is provided, which includes a main gear 27, a left auxiliary gear 28 meshing with the main gear 27, a reverse gear 30 meshing with the main gear 27, and a right auxiliary gear 31 meshing with the reverse gear 30. This configuration allows the first and second arms, extending to the left rear and left front respectively, and the third and fourth arms, extending to the right front and right rear respectively, to be arranged separately in the lateral direction. Therefore, the first arm 7 protruding to the left rear and the fourth arm 10 protruding to the right rear can be configured not to interfere with the radiator 12. Similarly, the second arm 8 protruding to the left front and the third arm 9 protruding to the right front can be configured not to interfere with the air filter 11.

[0029] Figure 7 yes Figure 5The image shows a left-side view of the fuselage 5. The inline four-cylinder engine 15 is configured with the crankshaft 14 oriented laterally relative to the fuselage 5, making it easier to achieve left-right balance of the fuselage. The inline four-cylinder engine 15 has horizontally positioned pistons, which reduces the aircraft's altitude compared to vertically positioned pistons. The air filter 11 is located at the upper front of the fuselage 5, and the radiator 12 is located at the upper rear. The top gear assembly 40 allows the arm to avoid interference with the positioned air filter 11 and radiator 12 without increasing the height of the drive shaft 25. In the side view, it can be seen that the second arm 8 is positioned below the top of the air filter 11.

[0030] Industrial applicability This invention is suitable as a transmission system for unmanned aerial vehicles, allowing the propeller drive arm to avoid interference with the radiator or air filter without raising its position.

[0031] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures 1. First propeller 2. Second propeller 3. Third propeller 4. Fourth propeller 5. Fuselage 6. Propeller 6a. Leaf blade 7. First Arm 7a. Connecting part 8. Second arm 8a. Connecting part 9. Third arm 9a. Connecting part 10. The Fourth Arm 10a. Connecting part 11. Air filter 12. Radiator 13. Muffler 14. Crankshaft 15. Inline four-cylinder engine 16. First Piston 17. Second Piston 18. Third Piston 19. Fourth Piston 20. Drive gear 21. Driven gear 22. Centrifugal clutch 23. Clutch shaft 24. Bevel gears 25. Drive shaft 26. Base Gear 27. Main gear 28. Left auxiliary gear 29. Left auxiliary drive shaft 30. Reverse gear 31. Right auxiliary gear 32. Right auxiliary drive shaft 33. First bevel gear 34. Second bevel gear 35. Third bevel gear 36. Fourth bevel gear 37. Follower gear 38. Support leg 39. Engine cover 40. Top gear assembly 100. Transmission System 200. Unmanned aerial vehicles.

Claims

1. A transmission system for an unmanned aerial vehicle, wherein, The unmanned aerial vehicle includes: body; Four arms, namely the first arm, the second arm, the third arm and the fourth arm arranged in a clockwise direction on the fuselage; Propellers are located at each end of the respective arms; and An inline four-cylinder engine that drives the propeller; The transmission system includes: A drive gear mounted on the crankshaft of the inline four-cylinder engine; A driven gear mounted on the clutch shaft meshes with the drive gear; A bevel gear mounted on the clutch shaft via a centrifugal clutch drives a drive shaft perpendicular to the clutch shaft. A base gear mounted on the drive shaft is driven by the bevel gear; Top gear assembly, comprising: The main gear mounted on the drive shaft; The left auxiliary gear meshes with the main gear; A reverse gear meshing with the main gear; and The right auxiliary gear meshes with the reverse gear; A first bevel gear and a second bevel gear, each bevel gear meshing with the left auxiliary gear, the first bevel gear driving the first arm, and the second bevel gear driving the second arm; and The third bevel gear and the fourth bevel gear, each bevel gear meshing with the right auxiliary gear, the third bevel gear driving the third arm, and the fourth bevel gear driving the fourth arm.

2. The transmission system of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein: The inline four-cylinder engine is configured such that the crankshaft is positioned laterally, relative to the engine block in a left-right orientation.

3. The transmission system for an unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein, The inline four-cylinder engine is equipped with horizontally arranged pistons.

4. The transmission system of the unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein, The air filter is located at the upper front part of the body, and the radiator is located at the upper rear part of the body.

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