Unmanned aerial vehicle line patrol autonomous endurance device

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of unmanned aerial vehicle cruising, in particular to an unmanned aerial vehicle line patrol autonomous cruising device which comprises a CT energy taking module, a wireless electric energy transmission module and an energy storage module, the CT energy taking module is arranged on a preset split conductor of a target tower and is connected with the preset split conductor through the preset split conductor, and the wireless electric energy transmission module is connected with the energy storage module through the wireless electric energy transmission module. The electric energy on the preset split conductor is obtained; the wireless electric energy transmission module is arranged on a preset split conductor, receives electric energy through wireless electric energy transmission and converts the electric energy into a direct current electric signal; and the energy storage module is arranged on the target unmanned aerial vehicle and is connected with the wireless electric energy transmission module so as to convert the direct current electric signal into the charging voltage of the target unmanned aerial vehicle. Therefore, the problems that an existing autonomous endurance device is low in energy taking efficiency and heavy in airborne weight, and the insulation problem needs to be considered are solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of drone endurance, and in particular to a drone line patrol autonomous endurance device that utilizes split conductors of high-voltage lines to obtain energy. Background Art

[0002] In today's power line inspection, drone inspection has become an important work method. Traditional power inspection requires workers to climb up to inspect, which involves the risk of high-altitude operations; the use of drones can prevent personnel from entering high-risk areas and significantly reduce the safety risks of operators. Drones can work in harsh natural environments such as rainy and snowy weather or mountains, canyons, and rivers, and quickly cover large areas and power lines that are difficult to reach manually. Compared with traditional manual inspections, these greatly save manpower, material resources, and even time costs.

[0003] With the increasing maturity of autonomous cruise technology of drones, the automated line inspection program in power inspection can allow drones to patrol lines autonomously without the need for staff to go deep into the front line, and can achieve autonomous flight, path planning and flight control. These systems obtain flight data through onboard sensors (such as GPS, inertial measurement unit, etc.), and rely on preset algorithms and programs for autonomous navigation and flight. Ground operators can control and detect the flight status of drones in the control room, and can pre-set flight paths, mission points and routes through software. At the same time, the advanced sensor technologies equipped with drones, such as high-definition cameras, infrared thermal imaging, and lidar, can obtain high-quality images and data, which can serve as an important basis for subsequent analysis and decision-making, helping to predict potential failures and optimize maintenance strategies. Compared with manual drone inspections, these have greatly improved efficiency, greatly promoted industry development, and promoted innovation and progress in smart grid and facility management technologies.

[0004] However, the existing drone endurance technology is far behind the development of drone autonomous cruise technology. At present, most of the power industry's line inspection drones still rely on portable batteries to charge the drones. Generally, 3-5 sets of batteries are carried when going out for missions, and each set of batteries can provide 30-40 minutes of flight time for the drone. This results in the drones being close to the power transmission lines but needing to frequently go back and forth to charge, falling into the dilemma of "often walking by the river but having no water to drink". This situation has greatly reduced the efficiency of drone line inspections, and has greatly restricted the rapidly developing drone autonomous cruise technology.

[0005] At present, there are several ways to charge drones: drone nest charging, wireless power transmission, solar charging and battery replacement. In 2014, a research team from Chiba University in Japan developed a drone nest prototype that can realize drone battery replacement and charging, but the drone nest is made with sophisticated craftsmanship and high manufacturing costs, and there may be industry restrictions on "one drone, one nest" in terms of communication; wireless power transmission uses the principle of electromagnetic induction to allow drones and ground equipment to transmit power through inductive coupling, but traditional wireless power transmission requires the participation of ground power supply equipment. In this way, under the premise that wireless power transmission is already inefficient, another power supply needs to be prepared, and the economy and convenience are not very high; solar charging is to integrate solar panels into the fuselage or wing surface of the drone, and charge by converting solar energy into electricity. This method is suitable for drones that perform inspection tasks outdoors for a long time, especially in remote areas or areas without power grid coverage, but solar power supply is very unstable, especially in rainy weather, it cannot fly stably; finally, replacing the battery is the simplest. The battery module of the drone is designed to be detachable. During flight or between missions, the drone can return to the base or designated location, and the operator can replace the battery module, but this method requires additional human resources and operating steps.

[0006] At present, drone inspections are mainly used in medium and low voltage power transmission and transformation systems and substations, but in fact, the demand for autonomous drone inspections and endurance is more urgent in high and ultra-high voltage applications, because high and ultra-high voltage lines are often distributed in cities with developed economic activities and large electricity demand to support industrial, commercial and residential electricity needs, or to transmit large-capacity electricity across large geographical obstacles such as rivers, canyons and mountains. The common feature of these places is that there is a high demand for drone line inspections and it is difficult to conduct manual inspections. Therefore, if autonomous cruising and autonomous endurance of drones along high and ultra-high voltage lines can be achieved, it will greatly reduce the risks and costs of human transportation, and has extremely broad application prospects and commercial value.

[0007] At present, various attempts have been made at home and abroad on autonomous endurance of drones based on autonomous cruising. To solve the autonomous endurance of drones, both the endurance device energy-taking end and the drone charging end are indispensable. According to the different combinations of the high and low potential of the power transmission line and the high and low potential of the drone power supply platform, the drone power supply scheme can generally have different combinations such as "low-to-low use", "high-to-low use", and "high-to-high use".

[0008] The easiest to think of and the easiest to implement is the "low-power, low-use" type, where both power generation and drone charging are placed on low-voltage poles. This is not only easy to install, but also does not require insulation issues. The most commonly used low-voltage power generation method is solar power generation. Figure 1As shown, solar energy is collected by installing solar panels on transmission towers, and the panels are connected to batteries for energy storage, which are then used to power the drone nest. The disadvantage of this method is that the drone nest will "go on strike" when the battery is insufficient due to long periods of rainy weather. In addition, in actual application, bird excrement may wrap around the solar panels after a period of time, which greatly reduces the effective light-collecting area of ​​the solar panels. Workers are also required to climb up the towers regularly to deal with foreign objects. Moreover, as an emerging product, the drone nest has no precedent for such large-scale application. The commercial "one machine, one nest" restriction greatly reduces the practicality of this solution, and there is a risk of theft if the relatively expensive drone nest is directly placed on a tower in the wilderness.

[0009] Compared with solar power generation, CT (Current Transformer) power generation obviously has the advantage of inexhaustible energy. Figure 2 As shown, the actual CT energy extraction is of high potential like the transmission line, while the carrier transmission tower where the drone nest is installed is still at low potential. In this way, if the CT energy extraction and the drone nest power supply are combined, it is a "high-voltage and low-voltage" type. The CT energy extraction device on the high-voltage side is rectified and inverted to high-frequency AC, and connected to the drone nest on the low-voltage side through an insulator made of a metal flange. The insulator consists of 10 layers of wireless power transmission coils with a spacing of 10 cm between each other, which can not only play an insulating role, but also transfer energy between the CT energy extraction device and the drone nest in a layer-by-layer progressive form. However, in actual applications, the energy that the multi-relay WPT system can currently transmit is extremely limited, which means that the CT energy source that should be continuous will be blocked to power the drone nest. Therefore, at this stage, this solution is still difficult to put into practical application.

[0010] Considering that insulation will be a difficult problem to solve whether the UAV is powered by building a wireless charging platform or a UAV nest, if CT is still used for energy extraction, the ideal situation is to make the CT open and install an adjustable mechanical arm directly on the top of the line patrol UAV. Figure 3 As shown in the figure, the UAV power supply working mode is: when the UAV power is less than the threshold, it will automatically search for the nearest power transmission cable, and the clamp will remain open during the approach process; when the clamp approaches the power line, it will quickly engage; finally, when the CT and the power line are fully matched, the clamp will automatically close, and from then on, the entire UAV can be directly hung on the transmission line to draw power by electromagnetic induction; after the power is fully drawn, it will fly away from the transmission cable in the opposite order to continue patrolling the line. However, the biggest problem with this solution is that the CT core is too heavy as a whole, and the load-bearing problem puts too much pressure on the patrol UAV. In addition, in theory, this UAV endurance method is an act of "stealing electricity" for the State Grid, and there will be many non-technical problems in actual application.

[0011] In summary, the existing technical solutions have the following shortcomings: the photovoltaic energy extraction efficiency of the "low-take and low-use" type is low, the photovoltaic panels need to be cleaned regularly, and the drones are at risk of being stolen; the "high-take and low-use" type needs to consider insulation issues, the transmission power of wireless power transmission insulators is very limited, and the technology is not yet mature; for the airborne solution, the CT body is heavy, and the aircraft's load-bearing capacity needs to be considered, and there may be non-technical commercial promotion risks in the future. Summary of the invention

[0012] The present invention provides an autonomous endurance device for unmanned aerial vehicle line patrol, so as to solve the problems of low energy efficiency, heavy load and insulation problem in existing autonomous endurance devices.

[0013] An embodiment of the present invention provides an autonomous endurance device for unmanned aerial vehicle line patrol, comprising: a CT energy acquisition module, which is arranged on a preset split conductor of a target pole tower to obtain electric energy on the preset split conductor, wherein the preset split conductor is a two-split conductor or a four-split conductor; a wireless power transmission module, which is arranged on the preset split conductor and the target unmanned aerial vehicle, receives the electric energy through wireless power transmission, and converts the electric energy into a direct current signal; and an energy storage module, which is arranged on the target unmanned aerial vehicle and connected to the wireless power transmission module to convert the direct current signal into a charging voltage for the target unmanned aerial vehicle.

[0014] Optionally, the CT energy acquisition module includes a CT energy acquisition device, a front transient overvoltage protection circuit, a rectifier filter circuit and a DC-DC conversion circuit, wherein:

[0015] The CT energy acquisition device is sleeved on the preset split conductor to obtain alternating current on the preset split conductor through the principle of electromagnetic induction; the front transient overvoltage protection circuit is connected to the CT energy acquisition device to absorb and transfer transient overvoltage on the preset split conductor; the rectifier and filter circuit is connected to the front transient overvoltage protection circuit to convert the alternating current into pulsating direct current; the DC-DC conversion circuit is connected to the rectifier and filter circuit to convert the pulsating direct current into electrical energy that meets the target load.

[0016] Optionally, the wireless power transmission module includes a high-frequency inverter, a wireless charging platform, a transmitting coil, a receiving coil and an AC-DC rectifier, wherein:

[0017] The high-frequency inverter is connected to the CT energy acquisition module to convert the electrical energy into high-frequency alternating current; the wireless charging platform is built on the preset split conductor and connected to the high-frequency inverter to provide a landing point for the target UAV; the transmitting end coil is arranged on the wireless charging platform to generate an alternating magnetic field according to the high-frequency alternating current; the receiving end coil is arranged at the bottom of the target UAV to receive the alternating magnetic field and convert the alternating magnetic field into an alternating current signal through electromagnetic induction; the AC-DC rectifier is connected to the receiving end coil to convert the alternating current signal into the direct current signal.

[0018] Optionally, when the preset split conductor is a two-split conductor, the wireless charging platform is formed by connecting a four-split spacer rod with a CT energy acquisition device sleeved on the two-split conductor.

[0019] Optionally, when the preset split conductor is a four-split conductor, the wireless charging platform is formed by connecting two four-split spacers with a CT energy acquisition device sleeved on the four-split conductor.

[0020] Optionally, the wireless charging platform is provided with a plurality of magnetic devices.

[0021] Optionally, the energy storage module includes a DC-DC voltage regulation circuit and a battery, wherein:

[0022] The DC-DC voltage regulating circuit is connected to the wireless power transmission module and the battery respectively to convert the direct current signal into a charging voltage of the target drone according to the target demand of the battery.

[0023] The autonomous endurance device for unmanned aerial vehicle line patrol proposed in the embodiment of the present invention is applied to split-conductor high-voltage or ultra-high-voltage transmission lines, which is equivalent to setting up a drone charging point on the transmission line, and the cost is greatly reduced compared to the solution of building a photovoltaic energy acquisition device on the tower and adding a drone nest to charge the autonomous cruising drone. Especially for power line patrol in mountainous areas, there is no need for people and vehicles to cooperate with the drone. It is only necessary to let the drone with autonomous cruising function patrol along the transmission line by itself. When the endurance is insufficient, it can be charged close to our device, and then continue to patrol the line after it is fully charged at the charging point until the entire line is inspected. The device solves the problem of autonomous endurance under the background of the increasingly mature autonomous cruising technology of unmanned aerial vehicles, can greatly reduce the manpower and material costs of power patrol, bring about a major earthquake in the power line patrol industry, and truly realize low-cost, fully unmanned, and large-scale application prospect autonomous endurance based on autonomous cruising of drones in the power patrol industry.

[0024] Additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will be given in part in the following description and in part will be obvious from the following description, or will be learned through practice of the present invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0025] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and easily understood from the following description of the embodiments in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0026] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the autonomous power supply device for the "low-power and low-use" UAV;

[0027] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the autonomous power supply device for the "high-power and low-use" UAV;

[0028] Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the working mode of the self-charging drone with a robotic arm, where (a) shows the gripper in an open state, (b) shows the gripper power supply connected, and (c) shows the gripper in a closed state;

[0029] Figure 4 This is a schematic structural diagram of an autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a UAV according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0030] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of single and double air gap energy extraction power of an energy extraction CT provided according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0031] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of energy extraction power under different primary currents of an energy extraction CT double air gap model provided according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of coupling between a drone and a wireless charging platform according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0033] Figure 8 A schematic diagram of an autonomous endurance device for a UAV based on four split conductors provided according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0034] Fig. 9 A schematic diagram of another autonomous endurance device for a UAV based on four-split conductors provided according to an embodiment of the present invention;

[0035] Fig.10 A schematic diagram of an autonomous endurance device for a UAV based on two split conductors provided according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] Description of reference numerals:

[0037] 40- autonomous endurance device for UAV line patrol, 41- CT energy acquisition module, 411- CT energy acquisition equipment, 412- front transient overvoltage protection circuit, 413- rectifier filter circuit, 414- DC-DC conversion circuit, 42- wireless power transmission module, 421- high frequency inverter, 422- wireless charging platform, 423- transmitting end coil, 424- receiving end coil, 425- AC-DC rectifier, 43- energy storage module, 431- DC-DC voltage regulation circuit, 432- battery, 44- preset split conductor, 45- target UAV, 46- four-split spacer and 47- magnetic device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0038] Embodiments of the present invention are described in detail below, examples of which 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 invention, and should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

[0039] The following describes an autonomous line patrol device for a drone according to an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0040] Figure 4 The present invention is a schematic structural diagram of an autonomous navigation device for patrolling a line by a UAV provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

[0041] like Figure 4 As shown, the autonomous endurance device 40 for UAV line patrol includes: a CT energy acquisition module 41, a wireless power transmission module 42 and an energy storage module 43.

[0042] The CT energy acquisition module 41 is arranged on a preset split conductor 44 of the target tower to obtain the electric energy on the preset split conductor, wherein the preset split conductor 44 is a two-split conductor or a four-split conductor. The wireless power transmission module 42 is arranged on the preset split conductor 44 and the target UAV 45, receives the electric energy through wireless power transmission, and converts the electric energy into a direct current signal. The energy storage module 43 is arranged on the target UAV 45 and connected to the wireless power transmission module 42 to convert the direct current signal into a charging voltage of the target UAV 45.

[0043] In some embodiments, the CT energy acquisition module 41 includes a CT energy acquisition device 411, a pre-transient overvoltage protection circuit 412, a rectifier filter circuit 413 and a DC-DC conversion circuit 414, wherein:

[0044] The CT energy acquisition device 411 is sleeved on the preset split conductor 44 to obtain alternating current on the preset split conductor 44 through the principle of electromagnetic induction; the front transient overvoltage protection circuit 412 is connected to the CT energy acquisition device 411 to absorb and transfer the transient overvoltage on the preset split conductor 44; the rectifier and filter circuits 413413 are connected to the front transient overvoltage protection circuit 412 to convert alternating current into pulsating direct current; the DC-DC conversion circuit 414 is connected to the rectifier and filter circuit 413 to convert pulsating direct current into electrical energy that meets the target load.

[0045] Specifically, multiple CT energy acquisition devices 411 are sleeved on the preset split conductor 44, and multiple CT energy acquisition devices 411 obtain energy from the preset split conductor 44 through the principle of electromagnetic induction to obtain alternating current. The specific number of CT energy acquisition devices 411 is determined based on comprehensive consideration of the energy acquisition size and economic applicability. Generally, 2 or 4 (an even number is considered for balance) are installed.

[0046] It should be noted that, in order to prove and further improve the performance of the CT energy extraction device 411, the embodiment of the present invention uses finite element simulation software such as Ansys Electronics and Altair Flux to simulate and analyze the relationship between the core material, core air gap structure, secondary side turns, primary side current and secondary side load of the energy extraction CT and the output power of the energy extraction CT, and completes the optimization design of the CT core part based on the simulation results.

[0047] Combined with the conductor size of the high-voltage transmission line, the basic size parameters of the core are set as: R = 142mm, r = 60mm, H = 50mm, where R, r, and H are the outer diameter, inner diameter, and thickness of the core respectively. The core material is silicon steel sheet, and the primary and secondary turns are set to 1 and 130 respectively.

[0048] Since the magnitude of the current in the split conductor 44 depends on multiple factors, such as the load, design capacity, and line length of the transmission line, the design capacity of a 500kV transmission line is usually between 1000MVA and 3000MVA, and the current of each split conductor on the four split conductors 44 is about 288.7A to 866A. Now the primary current is set to an alternating current with a frequency of 50Hz and an effective value of 390A, and the air gap width is set to 1mm. The loads are set to 1-100Ω respectively.

[0049] like Figure 5As shown, it can be seen from the simulation that no matter it is a single air gap model or a double air gap model, the change trend is that when the load resistance is small, the core works in the linear region, and the output power of the secondary side of the core will increase with the increase of the load resistance, showing a trend of first rising to the maximum value and then gradually decreasing. The best load value of the single air gap CT energy extraction model is about 35Ω, and a single CT can extract more than 120W of energy; the double air gap CT model is more in line with the actual CT situation, and the best load value is about 17Ω. The maximum energy extraction power of a single CT can also reach nearly 60W, which further verifies the rationality of CT energy extraction as the front-stage energy supply method of the wireless charging platform 422.

[0050] like Figure 6 As shown in the figure, the simulation selected a more realistic double air gap model, and changed the primary current to observe the change of the single CT power as the load increases. It can be seen that when only the primary current is changed, the optimal load point for maximum power remains basically unchanged, and the maximum power increases with the increase of the primary current. When the primary current is 500A, the maximum power point can be close to 90W.

[0051] Furthermore, since the line current will increase instantaneously due to lightning strikes, power switch operation or other electrical faults during the actual operation of the high-voltage transmission line, and then the secondary side induced voltage will be instantly raised, although the entire process lasts for a short time, the damage to the subsequent circuit is very huge. Therefore, in order to ensure that the CT energy acquisition device 411 can still work normally and not damage the subsequent circuit when it is struck by lightning or short-circuited, the embodiment of the present invention designs a pre-transient overvoltage protection circuit 412, and connects the pre-transient overvoltage protection circuit 412 to the CT energy acquisition device 411.

[0052] It should be noted that common transient overvoltage protection components include metal-oxide varistors (MOVs), gas discharge tubes (GDTs) and transient voltage suppressors (TVSs). However, since the secondary side output of the CT energy extraction device 411 is an AC voltage, the embodiment of the present invention selects a bidirectional TVS for overvoltage protection.

[0053] Furthermore, the embodiment of the present invention designs a semi-active rectifier and filter circuit 413, and connects the rectifier and filter circuit 413 to the pre-transient overvoltage protection circuit 412. The rectifier link uses a diode to convert alternating current into pulsating direct current, and the filter link smoothes the pulsating direct current through a capacitor to reduce ripple. The voltage stabilization link maintains the output voltage stable through an integrated voltage stabilizer.

[0054] Furthermore, in the CT energy acquisition device 411, the DC output voltage after the rectification, filtering and voltage stabilization circuit 413 is generally not equal to the voltage required by the specified load, and the former is often greater than the latter, so another stage of DC-DC conversion is required to meet the load requirements. Therefore, the embodiment of the present invention connects the DC-DC conversion circuit 414 with the rectification and filtering circuit 413 to convert the pulsating DC power into electrical energy that meets the target load.

[0055] In some embodiments, the wireless power transmission module 42 includes a high-frequency inverter 421, a wireless charging platform 422, a transmitting end coil 423, a receiving end coil 424 and an AC-DC rectifier 425, wherein:

[0056] The high-frequency inverter 421 is connected to the CT energy acquisition module 41 to convert electrical energy into high-frequency alternating current; the wireless charging platform 422 is built on the preset split conductor 44 and connected to the high-frequency inverter 421 to provide a landing point for the target UAV 45; the transmitting end coil 423 is arranged on the wireless charging platform 422 to generate an alternating magnetic field according to the high-frequency alternating current; the receiving end coil 424 is arranged at the bottom of the target UAV 45 to receive the alternating magnetic field and convert the alternating magnetic field into an alternating current signal through electromagnetic induction; the AC-DC rectifier 425 is connected to the receiving end coil 424 to convert the alternating current signal into a direct current signal.

[0057] Specifically, Figure 4 and 7 As shown, the input end of the wireless power transmission module 42 is the stable direct current provided by the last-stage DC-DC conversion circuit 414 of the front CT energy acquisition module 41, and then the direct current is converted into high-frequency alternating current through the high-frequency inverter 421, and connected to the wireless power transmission transmitting end coil 423 set on the split conductor 44 through the compensation network compensation, and the high-frequency signal generates an alternating magnetic field through the transmitting end coil 423, and the magnetic field propagates in the air. The receiving end coil 424 at the bottom of the drone receives the magnetic field, and the transmitting end coil 423 and the receiving end coil 424 are coupled and matched, and the magnetic field is converted into an alternating current signal through electromagnetic induction, and finally a stable output end direct current signal is obtained through the AC-DC rectifier 425.

[0058] In some embodiments, when the pre-set split conductor 44 is a four-split conductor, the wireless charging platform 422 is formed by connecting two four-split spacers 46 with the CT energy extraction device 411 sleeved on the four-split conductor.

[0059] Specifically, the quad-split conductor 44 is a specially designed high-voltage transmission line, which is usually used for ultra-high voltage transmission lines of 500 kV and above. Compared with a traditional single conductor, it transmits current through four split conductors to reduce resistance loss and improve the stability and reliability of the transmission line.

[0060] like Figure 8 As shown, when the pre-set split conductor 44 is a four-split conductor, two four-split spacers 46 are used, each of which has four vertices, and the two four-split spacers 46 together have a total of 8 vertices. A CT energy extraction device 411 is extended from an even number of vertices (selected according to actual energy extraction needs) to extract electrical energy from the transmission line as needed; a power electronic device is added between the two four-split spacers 46 and encapsulated with gum or other materials, and the two four-split spacers 46 together form a rectangular parallelepiped, and a wireless power transmission platform is built between the two. Fig. 9 As shown, if the drone is small, the bottom can be made into a wireless power transmission platform, and the front and back sides can be encapsulated into a grid shape to facilitate ventilation and water leakage. If the drone is large and difficult to enter, the top can be transformed into a wireless power transmission platform, and the landing point of the drone can be hollowed out so that the four legs of the drone can be inserted into the wireless power transmission platform for fixing and charging.

[0061] In addition, a communication device can be set inside the four-split spacer rods 46 at both ends for information transmission between the UAV and the UAV-like nest, such as the transmission of pictures and videos during line inspection.

[0062] In some embodiments, when the split conductor 44 is preset as a two-split conductor, a four-split spacer 46 is connected to the CT energy extraction device 411 sleeved on the two-split conductor to form a wireless charging platform 422 .

[0063] In some embodiments, the wireless charging platform 422 is provided with a plurality of magnetic devices 47 .

[0064] Specifically, the two-split conductor is similar to the four-split conductor and is also a specially designed transmission line used for high-voltage and ultra-high-voltage transmission lines. Compared with the traditional single conductor, the two-split conductor transmits current through two split conductors, aiming to reduce resistance loss and improve line stability and reliability.

[0065] like Figure 7 and 10 As shown, a four-split spacer 46 is placed horizontally, and the center area of ​​the four-split spacer 46 is transformed into a wireless power transmission platform, and a plurality of magnetic suction devices 47 are used to fix the drone, and the remaining CT energy acquisition devices 411 are similar to the autonomous endurance device of the drone on the four-split conductor.

[0066] It should be noted that the two four-split spacers 46 play a role of mechanical support and positioning in the four-split conductors. They not only fix the position of the conductors, but also ensure the correct spacing and arrangement between the conductors to prevent mutual contact or interference between the conductors (the spacing between the four conductors is 450 mm).

[0067] The four-split spacer 46 is usually made of insulating material and is used to provide electrical insulation protection between the conductors. This is very important to prevent electrical short circuits or leakage between the conductors, especially in high-voltage transmission lines, where the effectiveness of insulation is very important to the safety and stability of the system.

[0068] In a high-voltage power transmission system, the design of the four-split spacer 46 can optimize the electric field distribution. Through the reasonable design and arrangement of the four-split spacer 46, the concentration of electric field intensity on the conductor surface can be reduced, which helps to reduce the risk of partial discharge and electrical breakdown and improve the voltage resistance of the system.

[0069] The four-split spacers 46 can also serve as a support structure for additional equipment, such as integrating drone charging equipment into the machine nest. They can provide a stable support platform so that additional equipment can be safely and stably installed on the four-split conductor.

[0070] If the charging device is integrated in the spacer, the four-split spacer 46 can also provide a convenient installation and maintenance channel. This is particularly important for equipment installation and maintenance operations at high altitudes and in complex environments.

[0071] Therefore, the four-split spacer 46 in the four-split conductor is not only a simple mechanical support structure, but also a key electrical and mechanical component in the entire power transmission system, and its design and function directly affect the safety, reliability and operation efficiency of the power transmission system.

[0072] Furthermore, multiple connection modes can be planned for the wireless charging platform 422:

[0073] For small-sized drones that can directly hover inside the two four-split spacer bars 46, the wireless charging platform 422 will be planned at the bottom of the "basket", such as Figure 8 As shown, the front and rear sides are sealed with mesh fittings to allow rain to leak in without making the charging drone unstable. For large drones that are difficult to enter the "basket", it is designed to hover at the top, and then the fittings are encapsulated at the top and four holes are drilled to allow the four legs of the drone to be fully in contact with the wireless charging platform 422 to maintain stable charging, as shown in FIG. Fig. 9 shown.

[0074] In addition, considering the possible problems of bird nesting and snow melting, the wireless charging devices on some lines can be designed to be flat rather than basket-shaped according to actual conditions. Only the upper two wires of the four-split wire are used to lay the wireless charging platform 422. Magnetic devices 47 are added to the four feet of the drone and the corresponding landing points of the wireless charging platform 422 to ensure that the drone can land stably on the platform for charging. The same is true for the two-split wire. Fig.10 shown.

[0075] Furthermore, two-dimensional code verification is set on the bottom of the drone and the wireless charging platform 422 respectively. When the drone lands and docks to charge, it is necessary to hover first to perform two-dimensional code docking. Only drones that have successfully verified can land and charge at a fixed point.

[0076] Furthermore, after constructing and trial-operating the wireless charging platform 422 on the transmission line for CT energy collection, the embodiment of the present invention uses mathematical modeling and optimization algorithms to formulate a feasible machine nest layout plan to achieve possible subsequent large-scale applications; overcome the coordination difficulties of real-time monitoring and scheduling between the UAV dispatch center, charging platform and UAVs, and solve the challenges in resource management and decision support; improve the coverage of UAV cruising, reduce costs, and maximize efficiency.

[0077] In some embodiments, the energy storage module 43 includes a DC-DC voltage regulating circuit 431 and a battery 432, wherein the DC-DC voltage regulating circuit 431 is respectively connected to the wireless power transmission module 42 and the battery 432 to convert the DC power signal into a charging voltage of the target drone 45 according to the target requirements of the battery 432.

[0078] Specifically, Figure 4 As shown, the energy storage module 43 first provides a charging voltage suitable for the battery of the target drone through the DC-DC voltage regulator circuit 431 according to the needs of the battery 432; in order to protect the battery from being damaged by excessive charging current, a current limiting circuit or a voltage stabilizing circuit is usually required for protection, and the current must be adjusted to ensure that the charging current meets the safe charging range of the battery;

[0079] The energy storage module 43 may also include: a charging management circuit and a variety of protection circuits, wherein the charging management circuit controls the charging mode (such as constant current and constant voltage mode) to ensure that the correct charging method is used in different charging stages (such as the initial charging stage, the middle charging stage, and the full charging stage), and monitors the battery voltage and temperature in real time to prevent overcharging or overheating; the various protection circuits may be overcharging protection circuits, short circuit protection circuits, and temperature protection circuits, etc.

[0080] The autonomous line patrol device for a drone proposed in the embodiment of the present invention is further described below through a specific embodiment.

[0081] The energy collection end is close to the transmission line and uses a CT energy collection device 411 (the number of CTs is determined according to the energy collection size to ensure that there is enough energy). The energy is obtained and passed through the front transient overvoltage protection circuit 412 to solve the problem of excess energy discharge, thereby ensuring circuit stability; stable direct current is obtained through the rectifier filter circuit 413 and the DC-DC conversion circuit 414; the stable direct current passes through the high-frequency inverter circuit and then through the compensation network to supply energy to the wireless charging platform transmitter coil 423 built on the split conductor 44; after the drone lands on the wireless charging platform 422, the receiving end coil 424 at the bottom of the aircraft receives the energy transmitted by the wireless power and finally passes through the rectifier circuit and the DC-DC voltage regulator circuit 431 to supply power to the drone battery 432.

[0082] In summary, the autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a drone according to the embodiment of the present invention has the following beneficial effects:

[0083] (1) Using split conductors of high-voltage lines to obtain energy refers to using split conductors as the source for CT energy extraction, and also refers to using split conductors as the application scenario to build a wireless charging platform on the split conductors for drones to dock and charge.

[0084] (2) By installing CT energy harvesting equipment at the apex of the split conductor, electric energy can be directly drawn from the preset split conductor to supply energy for the subsequent wireless charging platform. Compared with traditional photovoltaic energy harvesting methods, this solves the problem of insufficient power for traditional UAVs during long-distance and long-term line patrols, and realizes long-term autonomous cruising.

[0085] (3) A wireless power transmission platform is established on the split conductors, which can achieve effective wireless charging regardless of the size of the drone. When the drone and the drone charging platform are connected through weak coupling, it can flexibly cope with drones of different sizes to ensure that they can be charged and resupplied when needed.

[0086] In the description of this specification, 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 invention. 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 N 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, without contradiction.

[0087] 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 the present invention, the meaning of "N" is at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless otherwise clearly and specifically defined.

Claims

1. An autonomous endurance device for UAV line patrol, characterized in that: include: A CT energy acquisition module, wherein the CT energy acquisition module is arranged on a preset split conductor of a target tower to acquire electric energy on the preset split conductor, wherein the preset split conductor is a two-split conductor or a four-split conductor; A wireless power transmission module, which is arranged on the preset split conductor and the target UAV, receives the electric energy through wireless power transmission, and converts the electric energy into a direct current signal; An energy storage module is disposed on the target UAV and connected to the wireless power transmission module to convert the DC power signal into a charging voltage for the target UAV.

2. The autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The CT energy acquisition module includes a CT energy acquisition device, a front transient overvoltage protection circuit, a rectifier filter circuit and a DC-DC conversion circuit, wherein: The CT energy acquisition device is sleeved on the preset split conductor to obtain alternating current on the preset split conductor through the principle of electromagnetic induction; The front transient overvoltage protection circuit is connected to the CT energy acquisition device to absorb and transfer the transient overvoltage on the preset split conductor; The rectifier and filter circuit is connected to the front transient overvoltage protection circuit to convert the alternating current into pulsating direct current; The DC-DC conversion circuit is connected to the rectification and filtering circuit to convert the pulsating direct current into electric energy that meets the target load.

3. The autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The wireless power transmission module includes a high-frequency inverter, a wireless charging platform, a transmitting coil, a receiving coil and an AC-DC rectifier, wherein: The high-frequency inverter is connected to the CT energy acquisition module to convert the electrical energy into high-frequency alternating current; The wireless charging platform is built on the preset split wire and connected to the high-frequency inverter to provide a landing point for the target UAV; The transmitting end coil is arranged on the wireless charging platform to generate an alternating magnetic field according to the high frequency alternating current; The receiving end coil is arranged at the bottom of the target UAV to receive the alternating magnetic field and convert the alternating magnetic field into an alternating current signal through electromagnetic induction; The AC-DC rectifier is connected to the receiving end coil to convert the alternating current signal into the direct current signal.

4. The autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a UAV according to claim 3, characterized in that: When the preset split conductor is a two-split conductor, the wireless charging platform is formed by connecting a four-split spacer rod with a CT energy acquisition device sleeved on the two-split conductor.

5. The autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a UAV according to claim 3 is characterized in that: When the preset split conductor is a four-split conductor, the wireless charging platform is formed by connecting two four-split spacers with a CT energy-collecting device sleeved on the four-split conductor.

6. The autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a UAV according to claim 3, characterized in that: The wireless charging platform is provided with a plurality of magnetic devices.

7. The autonomous endurance device for patrolling a line by a UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The energy storage module includes a DC-DC voltage regulation circuit and a storage battery, wherein: The DC-DC voltage regulating circuit is connected to the wireless power transmission module and the battery respectively to convert the direct current signal into a charging voltage of the target drone according to the target demand of the battery.

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