A wing folding mechanism capable of rotating and folding at an integrally variable angle and an aircraft

Abstract

The invention discloses a wing rotatable and foldable mechanism and an aircraft, which relate to the technical field of aircraft, and specifically comprise: a steering gear, which is connected to the driving motor power for providing power input; a transmission gear, a bevel gear portion and a spur gear portion are arranged on the outer periphery, the spur gear portion of the transmission gear meshes with the steering gear, and the axis of the transmission gear is parallel to the axis of the steering gear; a passive gear, which is a bevel gear, fixedly connected to the wing, and the passive gear meshes with the bevel gear portion of the transmission gear; the wing rotatable and foldable mechanism and the aircraft, which can rotate and fold at a variable angle as a whole, through redesigning the transmission gear and changing the angle between the transmission gear and the axis of the passive gear, so that the wing can automatically flip when unfolding to obtain an upward dihedral angle, and automatically return to a flat state when folding, and the storage is not affected by the upward dihedral angle, thereby reducing space occupancy, and the overall structure is simple, light, and the operation is stable and reliable.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of aircraft, and more particularly to a folding mechanism capable of rotating and folding wings at variable angles as a whole.

[0002] In addition, the present invention also relates to an aircraft comprising the above-mentioned wing integrally variable angle rotating and folding mechanism. Background Art

[0003] Small drones can be mounted on large drones for high-altitude drop, meeting the mission requirements of various combat scenarios. In order to mount as many small drones as possible on large drones, the wings of small drones need to be designed to be foldable, which can reduce the space occupied when mounted. When the large drone carrying the small drone arrives at the designated airspace, the small drone is dropped, and the wings of the small drone are unfolded through the folding mechanism to perform the flight mission.

[0004] Many existing technologies involve wing folding mechanisms, which can be divided into motor-driven and spring-driven types according to the driving force when the wings are unfolded. For the spring-driven folding mechanism, when the drone is stored for a long time, the spring in the folding mechanism will easily undergo permanent deformation due to long-term stress, thereby affecting the reliability of the wing folding mechanism. Therefore, the motor-driven folding mechanism is more stable and reliable.

[0005] In the existing motor-driven wing folding mechanisms, they can be divided into parallel type and stacked type according to the state of the wing after folding. The stacked wing folding mechanism occupies a large space after the wing is folded, and the wing is asymmetrical during the unfolding process, which affects the stability of the aircraft. However, the existing motor-driven parallel wing folding mechanisms do not consider the dihedral angle after the wing is unfolded, and all are simple unfolding and folding.

[0006] In summary, how to solve the problem that the wing has no dihedral angle when the wing is unfolded and the wing occupies a large space after being folded is a problem that needs to be solved urgently by those skilled in the art. Summary of the invention

[0007] In view of this, the purpose of the present invention is to provide a wing that can rotate and fold at an overall variable angle. By redesigning the transmission gear and changing the angle between the transmission gear and the axis of the passive gear, the wing can automatically flip over when unfolded to obtain an upward angle, and automatically return to flat when folded. The storage is not affected by the upward angle, which reduces space occupancy. The overall structure is simple, the weight is light, and the operation is stable and reliable.

[0008] Another object of the present invention is to provide an aircraft including the above-mentioned wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism, which has the same technical features and can solve the same technical problems.

[0009] In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides the following technical solutions:

[0010] A wing folding mechanism capable of rotating and folding at a variable angle as a whole, comprising:

[0011] A steering gear, which is connected to the driving motor power to provide power input;

[0012] A transmission gear, the outer periphery of which is provided with a bevel gear portion and a spur gear portion, the spur gear portion of the transmission gear is meshed with the steering gear, and the axis of the transmission gear is parallel to the axis of the steering gear;

[0013] The passive gear is a bevel gear, fixedly connected to the wing, the passive gear meshes with the bevel gear portion of the transmission gear, and the axis of the passive gear is coplanar with the axis of the transmission gear and the included angle is α, 0°<α≤30°.

[0014] Preferably, the transmission gear includes a left transmission gear and a right transmission gear;

[0015] The spur tooth portion of the left transmission gear meshes with the spur tooth portion of the right transmission gear, and the spur tooth portion of the left transmission gear or the spur tooth portion of the right transmission gear meshes with the steering gear.

[0016] Preferably, the passive gear comprises a left passive gear and a right passive gear;

[0017] The left passive gear is fixedly connected to the left wing, and the left passive gear is meshed with the bevel gear portion of the left transmission gear;

[0018] The right passive gear is fixedly connected to the right wing, and the right passive gear is meshed with the bevel gear portion of the right transmission gear.

[0019] Preferably, the left passive gear and the left wing of the composite honeycomb core structure are integrally solidified and formed;

[0020] The right passive gear and the right wing of the composite honeycomb core structure are integrally solidified and formed.

[0021] Preferably, transition gear teeth are provided at the junction of the spur gear portion and the bevel gear portion in the transmission gear.

[0022] Preferably, it also includes a limit frame, which is relatively fixedly connected to the external fuselage. When the wing is rotated outward to a set angle, the limit frame can abut against the side wall of the wing to limit the wing from continuing to rotate.

[0023] Preferably, it further comprises a locking pin, wherein the locking pin is slidably mounted relative to the fuselage along its own axis, and a spring for providing power is arranged between the locking pin and the fuselage;

[0024] When the wing is rotated outward to a set angle, the locking pin can be inserted into the locking pin hole in the wing to limit the rotation of the wing.

[0025] Preferably, it also includes a retaining frame, which is fixedly connected to the wing mounting cover of the fuselage, and the servo gear, the transmission gear, the driven gear and the wing are all installed between the retaining frame and the wing mounting cover through a mounting assembly.

[0026] Preferably, the mounting assembly includes a bolt and a straight bushing, the straight bushing is fixedly sleeved on the axial hole of the servo gear, the transmission gear and / or the passive gear, shoulder bushings are coaxially arranged at both ends of the straight bushing, and the shoulder bushing at one end is sleeved in the through hole of the retaining frame, the bolt passes through the combination of the straight bushing and the shoulder bushing, and a locking nut is arranged at the end of the bolt.

[0027] An aircraft comprises any one of the above-mentioned wing folding mechanisms capable of rotating and folding at variable angles as a whole.

[0028] The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism provided by the present invention has at least the following beneficial effects compared with the prior art:

[0029] 1. The bevel gear part is added to the transmission gear and meshed with the passive gear in the form of a bevel gear, so that when the wing fixed to the passive gear is unfolded, the wing itself can also rotate, thereby obtaining an upward angle to enhance the lift generated by the wing facing the wind; and when the wing is folded, the wing itself can rotate in the opposite direction and return to the horizontal state, thereby reducing the space occupied after folding;

[0030] 2. The transmission gear adopts a combination of spur gear and bevel gear. The spur gear is used to mesh with the steering gear or other transmission gears to ensure that multiple wings can rotate synchronously to ensure balanced lift on both sides of the aircraft.

[0031] 3. The transmission gear replaces the coaxial combination of spur gears and bevel gears, which helps to reduce the weight of the equipment and thus reduce the overall weight of the aircraft. At the same time, the use of gears for transmission has the advantages of high transmission efficiency, low energy loss, simple transmission path and stable and reliable operation.

[0032] The aircraft provided by the present invention includes the above-mentioned wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism, and has the same beneficial effects. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0033] In order to more clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the embodiments or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on the provided drawings without paying creative work.

[0034] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the wing folding mechanism capable of rotating and folding at a variable angle as a whole provided by the present invention;

[0035] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the bottom of the wing folding mechanism that can rotate and fold at a variable angle as a whole provided by the present invention;

[0036] Figure 3 A top view of the wing folding mechanism that can rotate and fold at an integrally variable angle provided by the present invention;

[0037] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the end portion of the wing folding mechanism that can rotate and fold at a variable angle as a whole provided by the present invention;

[0038] FIG. 5 is provided by the present invention Figure 3 Sectional view at AA in the middle;

[0039] FIG. 6 is provided by the present invention Figure 4 Sectional view at the middle BB;

[0040] FIG. 7 is an exploded view of the parts at the bottom of the wing's overall variable angle rotation and folding mechanism provided by the present invention.

[0041] Figure 1 - In Figure 7:

[0042] 1. Servo gear; 2. Transmission gear; 201, left transmission gear; 202, right transmission gear; 3. Passive gear; 301, left passive gear; 302, right passive gear; 4. Locking pin; 5. Spring; 6. Locking pin hole; 7. Left wing; 8. Right wing; 9. Wing mounting cover; 10. Limiting frame; 11. Retaining frame; 12. Straight bushing; 13. Shoulder bushing. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0043] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0044] The core of the present invention is to provide a wing that can rotate and fold at an overall variable angle. By redesigning the transmission gear and changing the angle between the transmission gear and the axis of the passive gear, the wing can automatically flip over when unfolded to obtain an upward angle, and automatically return to flat when folded. The storage is not affected by the upward angle, reducing space occupancy, and the overall structure is simple, light in weight, and stable and reliable in operation.

[0045] Another core of the present invention is to provide an aircraft including the above-mentioned wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism, which has the same technical features and can solve the same technical problems.

[0046] Please refer to Figure 1 - Figure 7, a wing folding mechanism capable of rotating and folding at a variable angle as a whole, comprising:

[0047] The steering gear 1 is connected to the driving motor for providing power input;

[0048] The transmission gear 2 has a bevel gear portion and a spur gear portion on its outer periphery, the spur gear portion of the transmission gear 2 meshes with the steering gear 1, and the axis of the transmission gear 2 is parallel to the axis of the steering gear 1;

[0049] The passive gear 3 is a bevel gear, fixedly connected to the wing, the passive gear 3 meshes with the bevel gear portion of the transmission gear 2, and the axis of the passive gear 3 is coplanar with the axis of the transmission gear 2 and the included angle is α, 0°<α≤30°;

[0050] like Figure 1 As shown in FIG5 , a spur gear portion and a bevel gear portion are arranged on the outer periphery of the transmission gear 2, and the spur gear portion meshes with the steering gear 1 to ensure smooth power transmission between the transmission gear 2 and the steering gear 1, and can also be used for mutual meshing between multiple groups of transmission gears 2 to ensure the synchronous unfolding or folding of multiple groups of wings, and ensure that the multiple groups of wings of the UAV are subjected to balanced forces, thereby ensuring the flight stability of the UAV;

[0051] The bevel gear part meshes with the passive gear 3, and ensures that there is an angle α between the axes of the passive gear 3 and the transmission gear 2, so that a bevel gear pair is formed between the passive gear 3 and the transmission gear 2, so that when the wing is unfolded, the wing itself can rotate, thereby generating an upward dihedral angle, and when the wing is folded, the wing itself can rotate in the opposite direction, so that the wing is restored to a horizontal level, reducing the space occupied after folding, and the entire rotary folding mechanism adopts gear transmission, with high transmission efficiency and stable and reliable operation, which is suitable for the use of folding wings of drones, and the entire rotary folding mechanism has a simple structure and is easy to assemble;

[0052] Moreover, the transmission gear 2 adopts a set of gears with both straight teeth and bevel teeth integrated on the outside, which helps to reduce the thickness and weight of the transmission gear 2, thereby reducing the space occupied by the rotating folding mechanism and reducing the take-off weight of the UAV;

[0053] In some embodiments, a coaxially fixed spur gear and bevel gear assembly is used to replace the transmission gear 2. Although its weight is increased, it has a simple structure, high transmission efficiency, stable and reliable operation, and also belongs to the protection scope of this application;

[0054] In some embodiments, the servo gear 1 is eliminated, and an external drive motor is used to directly drive the transmission gear 2, and then drive the passive gear 3, so as to drive the wings to fold and unfold, which also falls within the protection scope of the present application.

[0055] In some embodiments, the transmission gear 2 includes a left transmission gear 201 and a right transmission gear 202;

[0056] The spur gear portion of the left transmission gear 201 meshes with the spur gear portion of the right transmission gear 202, and the spur gear portion of the left transmission gear 201 or the spur gear portion of the right transmission gear 202 meshes with the steering gear 1;

[0057] like Figure 3 As shown, the transmission is performed by meshing the spur teeth of the two groups of transmission gears 2 with each other, so as to ensure the synchronization of the movement of the two groups of transmission gears 2, and further ensure the synchronization of the unfolding or folding of the wings on both sides; and the spur teeth of one group of transmission gears 2 are meshed with the steering gear 1 for transmission, so that the overall force transmission path is reasonable, and further ensure the overall stable and reliable operation.

[0058] In some embodiments, the passive gear 3 includes a left passive gear 301 and a right passive gear 302;

[0059] The left passive gear 301 is fixedly connected to the left wing 7, and the left passive gear 301 is meshed with the bevel gear portion of the left transmission gear 201;

[0060] The right passive gear 302 is fixedly connected to the right wing 8, and the right passive gear 302 is meshed with the bevel gear portion of the right transmission gear 202;

[0061] like Figure 1 , Figure 3 , Figure 4 As shown in FIG. 7 , wings are provided on both sides of the fuselage, and the left passive gear 301 drives the left wing 7, and the right passive gear 302 drives the right wing 8. The specific transmission route includes:

[0062] In the first transmission route, the steering gear 1 drives the left transmission gear 201, the left transmission gear 201 drives the left passive gear 301, and the left passive gear 301 drives the left wing 7;

[0063] In the second transmission route, the steering gear 1 drives the left transmission gear 201 , the left transmission gear 201 drives the right transmission gear 202 , the right transmission gear 202 drives the right passive gear 302 , and the right passive gear 302 drives the right wing 8 .

[0064] The left wing 7 and the right wing 8 are driven to rotate synchronously through two transmission routes, thereby ensuring that the wings on both sides can be unfolded and folded synchronously, and the wings on both sides have the same dihedral angle, thereby ensuring that the lift forces of the wings on both sides of the fuselage are equal.

[0065] In some embodiments, the left passive gear 301 and the left wing 7 of the composite honeycomb core structure are integrally cured and formed;

[0066] The right passive gear 302 and the right wing 8 of the composite honeycomb core structure are integrally solidified and formed;

[0067] like Figure 1 , Figure 3 As shown in FIG. 7 , the passive gear 3 is preferably a metal structure having 14 bevel gear teeth, and is integrally solidified and formed with the wing of the composite honeycomb core structure, which helps to improve the integrity of the rotating folding structure and the wing and reduce the overall weight of the drone;

[0068] In some embodiments, a transition gear tooth is provided at the junction of the spur gear portion and the bevel gear portion in the transmission gear 2;

[0069] The transmission gear 2 preferably has 38 gear teeth, of which 26 gear teeth are spur gear teeth forming a spur gear portion; 10 gear teeth are bevel gear teeth forming a bevel gear portion; and 2 gear teeth are transition gear teeth, which are arranged at the junction of the spur gear portion and the bevel gear portion. By adding transition gear teeth, the probability of tooth playing is reduced.

[0070] In some embodiments, a limit frame 10 is further included, which is relatively fixedly connected to the external fuselage. When the wing rotates outward to a set angle, the limit frame 10 can abut against the side wall of the wing to limit the wing from continuing to rotate;

[0071] like Figure 1 As shown, a limit frame 10 is added in the fuselage. When the wing is unfolded to a set angle, the side edge of the wing abuts against the limit frame 10, thereby limiting the continued rotation of the wing, thereby avoiding the tooth-breaking problem caused by the meshing of the straight teeth of the driven gear 3 and the transmission gear 2.

[0072] In some embodiments, it further comprises a locking pin 4, which is installed to slide relative to the fuselage along its own axis, and a spring 5 providing power is arranged between the locking pin 4 and the fuselage;

[0073] When the wing rotates outward to a set angle, the locking pin 4 can be inserted into the locking pin hole 6 in the wing to limit the rotation of the wing;

[0074] By arranging a locking pin 4 in the fuselage and using a spring 5 to drive the locking pin 4, the axis of the locking pin 4 should be perpendicular to the plane swept by the rotation of the wing; when the wing is in a state of not being fully unfolded or folded, the top of the locking pin 4 abuts against the surface of the wing, so that the spring 5 is in a compressed state, and when the wing rotates to a fully unfolded state, the locking pin hole 6 on the surface of the wing overlaps with the axial projection of the locking pin 4, and the locking pin 4 is driven by the spring 5 to undergo axial displacement and be inserted into the locking pin hole 6, thereby restricting the wing from continuing to rotate, that is, locking the wing so that the wing cannot continue to unfold or fold;

[0075] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG6 , a retaining frame 11 is provided on the lower side of the fuselage, and a penetrating stepped hole is provided in the retaining frame 11, so that the locking pin 4 passes through the stepped hole, and the spring 5 is provided in the large diameter portion of the stepped hole. When the wing needs to be folded, the locking pin 4 passing through the stepped hole portion is manually pulled to reset the locking pin 4, and the spring 5 is compressed again. At this time, the locking pin 4 is disengaged from the locking pin hole 6, and the restriction on the wing is released, so that the wing can be folded.

[0076] In some embodiments, it also includes a holder 11, the holder 11 is fixedly connected to the wing mounting cover 9 of the fuselage, and the steering gear 1, the transmission gear 2, the driven gear 3 and the wing are all installed between the holder 11 and the wing mounting cover 9 through the mounting assembly;

[0077] As shown in FIG. 5 and FIG. 7 , by adopting the form of a retaining frame 11 , the relative positions of the steering gear 1 , the transmission gear 2 and the driven gear 3 are ensured to be stable, thereby ensuring stable power transmission in the entire flipping and folding mechanism.

[0078] In some embodiments, the mounting assembly includes a bolt and a straight bushing 12, the straight bushing 12 is fixedly sleeved on the axial hole of the steering gear 1, the transmission gear 2 and / or the passive gear 3, the two ends of the straight bushing 12 are coaxially provided with shoulder bushings 13, and the shoulder bushing 13 at one end is sleeved in the through hole of the retainer 11, the bolt passes through the combination of the straight bushing 12 and the shoulder bushing 13, and the end of the bolt is provided with a locking nut;

[0079] As shown in FIG5 , by setting a straight bushing 12 at the axial hole of the servo gear 1, the transmission gear 2 and / or the driven gear 3, the wear between them and the stud during rotation is reduced, and by adding shoulder bushings 13 at both ends of the straight bushing 12 and adding locking nuts at the ends of the bolts, the installation of the servo gear 1, the transmission gear 2 and the driven gear 3 and the retaining frame 11 is achieved. At the same time, one group of shoulder bushings 13 passes through the through hole in the retaining frame 11, which can also reduce the wear between the stud and the retaining frame 11.

[0080] In addition to the wing overall variable angle rotation and folding mechanism disclosed in the above embodiments, the present invention also provides an aircraft including the above-mentioned wing overall variable angle rotation and folding mechanism. For the structures of other parts of the aircraft, please refer to the prior art and will not be described in detail herein.

[0081] The various embodiments in this specification are described in a progressive manner, and each embodiment focuses on the differences from other embodiments. The same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referenced to each other.

[0082] The above is a detailed introduction to the wing overall variable angle rotation and folding mechanism and the aircraft provided by the present invention. Specific examples are used in this article to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of the present invention. The description of the above embodiments is only used to help understand the method of the present invention and its core idea. It should be pointed out that for ordinary technicians in this technical field, without departing from the principle of the present invention, several improvements and modifications can be made to the present invention, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

Claims

1. A wing folding mechanism capable of rotating and folding at a variable angle as a whole, characterized in that: include: A steering gear (1), which is connected to the driving motor for providing power input; A transmission gear (2) having a bevel gear portion and a spur gear portion arranged on its outer periphery, the spur gear portion of the transmission gear (2) meshing with the steering gear (1), and the axis of the transmission gear (2) being parallel to the axis of the steering gear (1); A passive gear (3) which is a bevel gear fixedly connected to the wing, the passive gear (3) meshing with the bevel gear portion of the transmission gear (2), and the axis of the passive gear (3) and the axis of the transmission gear (2) are coplanar and have an included angle of α, 0°<α≤30°; Wherein, the transmission gear (2) comprises a left transmission gear (201) and a right transmission gear (202); The spur tooth portion of the left transmission gear (201) meshes with the spur tooth portion of the right transmission gear (202), and the spur tooth portion of the left transmission gear (201) or the spur tooth portion of the right transmission gear (202) meshes with the steering gear (1).

2. The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The passive gear (3) comprises a left passive gear (301) and a right passive gear (302); The left passive gear (301) is fixedly connected to the left wing (7), and the left passive gear (301) is meshed with the bevel gear portion of the left transmission gear (201); The right passive gear (302) is fixedly connected to the right wing (8), and the right passive gear (302) is meshed with the bevel gear portion of the right transmission gear (202).

3. The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism according to claim 2 is characterized in that: The left passive gear (301) and the left wing (7) of the composite honeycomb core structure are integrally solidified and formed; The right passive gear (302) and the right wing (8) of the composite honeycomb core structure are integrally solidified and formed.

4. The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism according to claim 1 is characterized in that: Transition gear teeth are provided at the junction of the spur gear portion and the bevel gear portion in the transmission gear (2).

5. The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism according to claim 1 is characterized in that: It also comprises a limiting frame (10) which is relatively fixedly connected to the external fuselage. When the wing is rotated outward to a set angle, the limiting frame (10) can abut against the side wall of the wing to limit the wing from continuing to rotate.

6. The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism according to claim 1 is characterized in that: It also includes a locking pin (4), the locking pin (4) being mounted along its own axis so as to slide relative to the fuselage, and a spring (5) for providing power is provided between the locking pin (4) and the fuselage; When the wing is rotated outward to a set angle, the locking pin (4) can be inserted into the locking pin hole (6) in the wing to limit the rotation of the wing.

7. The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that: It also comprises a retaining frame (11), the retaining frame (11) being fixedly connected to a wing mounting cover (9) of a fuselage, and the steering gear (1), the transmission gear (2), the driven gear (3) and the wing are all mounted between the retaining frame (11) and the wing mounting cover (9) via a mounting assembly.

8. The wing integrally variable angle rotation and folding mechanism according to claim 7 is characterized in that: The mounting assembly comprises a bolt and a straight bushing (12); the straight bushing (12) is fixedly sleeved on the axial hole of the steering gear (1), the transmission gear (2) and / or the driven gear (3); shoulder bushings (13) are coaxially arranged at both ends of the straight bushing (12); the shoulder bushing (13) at one end is sleeved in the through hole of the retaining frame (11); the bolt passes through the assembly of the straight bushing (12) and the shoulder bushing (13); and a locking nut is arranged at the end of the bolt.

9. An aircraft, characterized in that: The invention comprises a wing folding mechanism capable of rotating and folding at an integrally variable angle as described in any one of claims 1 to 8.

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