Ejection type unmanned aerial vehicle

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of unmanned aerial vehicles, in particular to an ejection type unmanned aerial vehicle which comprises an oil tank assembly, a fuselage skin and a fuselage shell with a wing root, and the fuselage shell with the wing root is of a wall plate type structure; the oil tank assembly comprises a main oil tank, a left front sub-oil tank, a right front sub-oil tank and a rear sub-oil tank which are arranged on the machine body shell, adjacent oil tanks in the main oil tank, the left front sub-oil tank, the right front sub-oil tank and the rear sub-oil tank are connected, and the right front sub-oil tank, the rear sub-oil tank, the left front sub-oil tank and the main oil tank are sequentially communicated and then communicated with an engine through a small oil can. The fuselage skin is used for connecting a wall plate of the fuselage shell, the main oil tank, the left front sub-oil tank, the right front sub-oil tank and the rear sub-oil tank to form a fuselage-oil tank integrated structure; catapulting fulcrums are arranged on the fuselage skin corresponding to the bottoms of the wing roots. According to the invention, oil can be safely and stably supplied while the strength and rigidity requirements of catapult-assisted take-off of the unmanned aerial vehicle are met.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of unmanned aerial vehicles, and in particular to a catapult-type unmanned aerial vehicle. Background Art

[0002] The catapult takeoff method does not require a runway, has low requirements for the takeoff site, and the catapult device can be reused, which greatly reduces the maintenance cost. Therefore, it has become one of the takeoff methods widely used by small fixed-wing drones today. However, due to the large overload of catapult takeoff, which is much greater than the overload of taxiing takeoff and rocket-assisted takeoff, this takeoff method also poses great challenges to the fuselage structural strength of the drone and the stable and safe fuel supply of the fuel system.

[0003] The fuselage of a drone connects the wings, tail, engine, landing gear and other components together to form a whole, and bears the load of each component, so it is the basis for the force of the entire drone. In order to meet the requirements of structural strength and rigidity, the traditional drone fuselage structure is composed of long stringers, girders, bulkheads and skins, which is relatively complex and has a high production cost.

[0004] In addition, existing UAV fuel tanks are mostly made of metal or plastic. Metal materials are relatively bulky and not suitable for small UAVs. Most of them are welded. After multiple ejection uses, oil leakage is prone to occur at the welds, and metal is also prone to rust and corrosion. The plastic structure has low strength and obviously does not meet the ejection requirements. In summary, for ejection-type UAVs, in order to ensure sufficient fuel loading and provide a safe and stable fuel supply method, the problem that the fuel tank structure needs to solve is: how to design the fuel tank to be lightweight while ensuring that the fuel tank structure meets the ejection take-off strength and stiffness requirements.

[0005] Therefore, it is necessary to provide a catapult-type UAV to solve the above problems. Summary of the invention

[0006] The present invention provides a catapult-type unmanned aerial vehicle to solve the existing problem of how to design a lightweight fuel tank while ensuring that the fuel tank structure meets the requirements of catapult take-off strength and rigidity.

[0007] A catapult-type UAV of the present invention adopts the following technical solution, including: A fuselage shell with a wing root, which adopts a wall plate structure, and the end of the wing root is provided with an interface to connect the wing; The fuel tank assembly includes: a main fuel tank arranged in the middle of the fuselage shell, a left front sub-tank at the left front, a right front sub-tank at the right front, and a rear sub-tank at the tail, wherein adjacent fuel tanks among the main fuel tank, the left front sub-tank, the right front sub-tank, and the rear sub-tank are connected, and the right front sub-tank, the rear sub-tank, the left front sub-tank, and the main fuel tank are connected in sequence and then connected to the engine through a small oil pot; and a fuselage skin, which is used to connect the wall panels of the fuselage shell, the main fuel tank, the left front sub-tank, the right front sub-tank and the rear sub-tank to form a fuselage-tank integrated structure; Among them, an ejection fulcrum is arranged on the fuselage skin corresponding to the bottom of the wing root.

[0008] Preferably, the fuselage shell and the main fuel tank, the left front sub-tank, the right front sub-tank, and the rear sub-tank, and the adjacent fuel tanks among the main fuel tank, the left front sub-tank, the right front sub-tank, and the rear sub-tank are bonded by epoxy resin.

[0009] Preferably, the left front sub-tank and the right front sub-tank are located in front of the center of gravity of the fuselage shell and are symmetrically arranged, and the rear sub-tank is located behind the center of gravity of the fuselage shell.

[0010] Preferably, the main fuel tank is provided with a low fuel alarm sensor, which is used to monitor the fuel level in the fuel tank of the drone.

[0011] Preferably, the small oil pot is provided with a refueling pipe, and a refueling connector is provided at the free end of the refueling pipe.

[0012] Preferably, an interface for connecting to the wing is provided at the end of the wing root.

[0013] Preferably, the left front sub-tank and the right front sub-tank are in the same shape as the wall panel on one side close to the fuselage shell.

[0014] Preferably, the main oil tank is also connected to an engine oil return pipe.

[0015] Preferably, the fuselage shell and the fuel tank assembly are both made of composite materials.

[0016] The beneficial effects of the present invention are: 1. The fuselage shell with the wing root is set as a wall panel structure, that is, the fuselage shell has no long stringers, girders and bulkheads, and the structure is simple. The fuselage shell and each fuel tank of the fuel tank assembly are manufactured separately and independently, and the fuselage shell and the fuel tank assembly are made of composite materials, so that the overall structure is light in weight and high in strength. Then, they are bonded together to form an integrated load-bearing structure. At the same time, an ejection fulcrum is set on the fuselage skin corresponding to the bottom of the wing root to meet the strength and stiffness requirements of the UAV ejection take-off and reduce the manufacturing difficulty.

[0017] 2. The fuel tank structure of the present invention can realize that each fuel tank consumes fuel in sequence, and the fuel consumption has little effect on the center of gravity position of the UAV, hardly affects the operation of the UAV, and does not affect the flight safety. Secondly, due to the setting of the fuel tank assembly of the present invention, when the flight attitude of the UAV changes, it will not affect the fuel supply of the main fuel tank to the engine, thereby minimizing the risk of engine stalling. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0018] 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 some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying creative work.

[0019] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of a catapult-type UAV of the present invention; Figure 2 A rear view of a catapult-type UAV of the present invention; Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the connection principle of a fuel tank assembly of a catapult-type UAV of the present invention; Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the structure of the main oil tank according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] In the figure: 1. Fuselage shell; 2. Main fuel tank; 3. Left front sub-tank; 4. Right front sub-tank; 5. Rear sub-tank; 6. Fuel tank connecting pipeline; 7. Engine oil return pipe; 8. Small oil can oil inlet pipe; 9. Small oil can; 10. Refueling connector; 11. Refueling connector; 12. Engine oil inlet pipe; 13. Low oil alarm sensor; 14. Ejection fulcrum. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0021] 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.

[0022] An embodiment of a catapult-type UAV of the present invention is as follows Figure 1As shown, it includes: a fuel tank assembly, a fuselage skin and a fuselage shell 1 with a wing root. The fuselage shell 1 with a wing root adopts a wall panel structure, that is, the fuselage shell 1 with a wall panel structure has no long stringers, girders and bulkheads, and has a simple structure. The end of the wing root is arranged to connect to the wing through an interface. The fuselage 1 can be divided into two or more wall panels according to the process technology and requirements, so as to facilitate the installation of the fuel tank assembly, thereby reducing the manufacturing difficulty; the fuel tank assembly includes: a main fuel tank 2 arranged in the middle of the fuselage shell 1, a left front sub-tank 3 at the left front, a right front sub-tank 4 at the right front and a rear sub-tank 5 at the tail, the main fuel tank 2, the left front sub-tank 3, the right front sub-tank 4 and the rear sub-tank 5 are connected to each other, and the right front sub-tank 4, the rear sub-tank 5, the left front sub-tank 3 and the main fuel tank 2 are connected in sequence and then connected to the engine through a small oil pot 9; the fuselage skin is used to connect the wall panels of the fuselage shell 1, the main fuel tank 2, the left front sub-tank 3, the right front sub-tank 4 and the rear sub-tank 5 to form a fuselage-fuel tank integrated structure; wherein, if Figure 2 As shown, an ejection fulcrum 14 is provided on the fuselage skin corresponding to the bottom of the wing root, which provides a main load-bearing point for the fuselage shell 1 when the UAV is ejected and takes off.

[0023] like Figure 3 As shown in the connection principle diagram of the oil tank assembly, the oil tank assembly and the small oil pot 9 in this embodiment are connected by oil pipes according to Figure 3 The sequence shown is connected by the oil tank connecting pipeline 6, so as to realize the communication between the oil tanks and between the oil tank and the engine. The small oil pot 9 is connected to the refueling joint 11 through the refueling pipe 10, and the small oil pot 9 is connected to the engine oil inlet pipe 12 to supply oil to the engine, and the engine oil return pipe 7 is connected to the bottom of the main oil tank 2; the bottom of the main oil tank 2 is connected to the small oil pot 9 through the small oil pot oil inlet pipe 8, the bottom of the left front sub-tank 3 is connected to the upper part of the main oil tank 2 through the oil pipe, the bottom of the rear sub-tank 5 is connected to the upper part of the left front sub-tank 3 through the oil pipe, the bottom of the right front sub-tank 4 is connected to the upper part of the rear sub-tank 5 through the oil pipe, and the upper part of the right front sub-tank 4 is connected to the external atmosphere through the pipeline.

[0024] In order to ensure the sealing of the fuel tank assembly and reduce the manufacturing cost, in this embodiment, the fuselage shell 1, the right front sub-tank 4, the rear sub-tank 5, the left front sub-tank 3, and the main fuel tank 2 are manufactured separately and independently, and then the fuselage shell 1 and the main fuel tank 2, the left front sub-tank 3, the right front sub-tank 4, and the rear sub-tank 5, and the adjacent fuel tanks in the main fuel tank 2, the left front sub-tank 3, the right front sub-tank 4, and the rear sub-tank 5 are bonded by epoxy resin. It should be noted that in this embodiment, the fuel tank assembly and the wall panel of the fuselage shell 1 are bonded by epoxy glue, and no fasteners are required. After bonding, the fuel tank assembly and the fuselage shell 1 become an integrated load-bearing structure. This embodiment has been successfully applied to a certain type of unmanned aerial vehicle. The test results show that the structure of the present invention can meet the strength and stiffness requirements during catapult take-off, and has good load-bearing characteristics for load conditions such as tension, compression, bending, and torsion.

[0025] The shape and arrangement of each fuel tank in the fuel tank assembly of the present invention can be designed according to the shape of the internal cavity of the fuselage shell 1 of the UAV. The shape and number of the fuel tanks are not limited. However, in order to maximize the flight time of the UAV, the space utilization rate of the internal cavity should be increased as much as possible. Specifically, Figure 1 As shown, the left front sub-tank 3 and the right front sub-tank 4 are close to the wall panel of the fuselage shell 1 and have the same shape as the wall panel. In the embodiment of the present invention, the fuel tank of the UAV is divided into a main fuel tank 2 and three smaller sub-tanks (left front sub-tank 3, right front sub-tank 4, and rear sub-tank 5) to reduce manufacturing difficulty and manufacturing cost.

[0026] like Figure 1 As shown, the left front sub-tank 3 and the right front sub-tank 4 are located in front of the center of gravity of the fuselage shell 1 and are symmetrically arranged, and the rear sub-tank 5 is located behind the center of gravity of the fuselage shell 1.

[0027] like Figure 1 and 4 As shown, a low oil level alarm sensor 13 is provided on the side of the main fuel tank 2 close to the rear sub-fuel tank 5, and the low oil level alarm sensor 13 is used to monitor the oil level in the UAV tank; the main fuel tank 2 is a symmetrical structure, arranged in the middle of the fuselage shell 1 and the connection area between the wing root and the fuselage, which can better withstand the load of the wing and the fuselage.

[0028] Specifically, an interface for connecting the wing is provided at the end of the wing root.

[0029] Specifically, the fuselage shell 1 and the fuel tank assembly are both made of carbon fiber composite materials. The use of this composite material makes the overall structure light in weight and high in strength, meeting the high overload working condition requirements of the UAV catapult take-off.

[0030] How it works When the UAV is refueling, the refueling connector 11 is connected to the external refueling equipment. Figure 3As shown in the connection schematic diagram, the fuel oil circuit sequence is: refueling connector 11 → small oil pot 9 → main fuel tank 2 → left front sub-tank 3 → rear sub-tank 5 → right front sub-tank 4. That is, after the main fuel tank 2 is filled with oil, the left front sub-tank 3 starts to be filled with oil; after the left front sub-tank 3 is filled with oil, the rear sub-tank 5 starts to be filled with oil... When the right front sub-tank 4 is filled with oil, all the tanks are refueled.

[0031] When the drone is flying in the air, Figure 3 As shown in the connection schematic diagram, the order of the fuel oil circuit is: right front sub-tank 4 → rear sub-tank 5 → left front sub-tank 3 → main tank 2 → small oil pot 9 → engine → oil return pipe 7 → main tank 2 (oil return). That is, when the drone continues to fly, the oil in the right front sub-tank 4 is consumed first, followed by the rear sub-tank 5 and the left front sub-tank 3, and the oil in the main tank 2 is consumed last. Before the fuel in the left front sub-tank 3 is consumed, the main tank 2 is always full of fuel. At this time, even if the drone flies at a large angle and the flight attitude changes, it will not affect the fuel supply of the main tank 2 to the engine, and will not cause the engine to stall. In addition, another benefit of consuming fuel in this order is that the fuel consumption order in the fuel tank assembly of this embodiment is right first, then left, first, then, then, and finally, the fuel in the main tank 2 is consumed, and the main tank 2 is located near the center of gravity of the UAV. Therefore, as the UAV flies, although the storage and distribution of fuel in the tank change, the consumption of fuel has little effect on the position of the center of gravity of the UAV, and has almost no effect on the operation of the UAV, let alone the flight safety of the UAV.

[0032] After the UAV is recovered, if there is remaining oil in the tank, the oil pumping equipment can be connected through the refueling connector 11 to carry out the oil pumping operation. The oil path sequence of the fuel is: right front sub-tank 4 → rear sub-tank 5 → left front sub-tank 3 → main tank 2 → small oil pot 9 → oil pumping equipment.

[0033] In summary, the present invention can realize a catapult-type UAV, which not only meets the strength and rigidity requirements of the UAV catapult take-off, but also provides a safe and stable fuel supply method and sufficient fuel loading capacity, while reducing the manufacturing difficulty and manufacturing cost.

[0034] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principle of the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A catapult-type UAV, characterized in that: include: A fuselage shell (1) with a wing root, which adopts a wall plate structure, and the end of the wing root is arranged to be connected to the wing through an interface; A fuel tank assembly, comprising: a main fuel tank (2) arranged in the middle of a fuselage shell (1), a left front sub-tank (3) at the left front, a right front sub-tank (4) at the right front, and a rear sub-tank (5) at the tail; adjacent fuel tanks among the main fuel tank (2), the left front sub-tank (3), the right front sub-tank (4), and the rear sub-tank (5) are connected; the right front sub-tank (4), the rear sub-tank (5), the left front sub-tank (3), and the main fuel tank (2) are connected in sequence and then connected to the engine via a small oil pot (9); and a fuselage skin, which is used to connect the wall panels of the fuselage shell (1), the main fuel tank (2), the left front sub-fuel tank (3), the right front sub-fuel tank (4) and the rear sub-fuel tank (5) to form a fuselage-fuel tank integrated structure; Wherein, an ejection fulcrum (14) is arranged on the fuselage skin corresponding to the bottom of the wing root.

2. The ejection type UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fuselage shell (1) and the main fuel tank (2), the left front sub-fuel tank (3), the right front sub-fuel tank (4), and the rear sub-fuel tank (5), and adjacent fuel tanks among the main fuel tank (2), the left front sub-fuel tank (3), the right front sub-fuel tank (4), and the rear sub-fuel tank (5) are bonded by epoxy resin.

3. The ejection type UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The left front sub-tank (3) and the right front sub-tank (4) are located in front of the center of gravity of the fuselage shell (1) and are symmetrically arranged, and the rear sub-tank (5) is located behind the center of gravity of the fuselage shell (1).

4. The catapult-type UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The main fuel tank (2) is provided with a low fuel level alarm sensor (13), and the low fuel level alarm sensor (13) is used to monitor the fuel level in the fuel tank of the UAV.

5. The catapult-type UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The small oil pot (9) is provided with a refueling pipe (10), and a refueling connector (11) is provided at the free end of the refueling pipe (10).

6. The catapult-type UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The left front sub-tank (3) and the right front sub-tank (4) are in the same shape as the wall panel on one side close to the fuselage shell (1).

7. The ejection-type UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The main oil tank (2) is also connected to an engine oil return pipe (7).

8. The catapult-type UAV according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fuselage shell (1) and the fuel tank assembly are both made of composite materials.

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