Test device and method for testing performance of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft

Abstract

The invention relates to a test device and method for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, the test device comprises a slide rail, a movable base and a lifting arm, the movable base is slidably arranged on the slide rail, one end of the slide rail is provided with a force sensor, and a tension spring is arranged between the force sensor and the movable base. The device has the advantages that the vertical take-off and landing bracket with the six-component balance is arranged at the end of the lifting arm, one side of the movable base is connected with the force sensor through the tension spring to achieve monitoring of an aircraft, and the self weight of the vertical take-off and landing bracket is offset through a hinged combined structure of the lifting arm and the movable base according to the lever principle; the situation that the aircraft bears extra weight during lifting is avoided, and meanwhile, the lifting arm plays a role in posture assistance; the performance of the electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft in the unfolding starting, starting and stopping, hovering and descending processes can be tested, and the personal safety of testers can be ensured.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the field of aircraft performance testing, and in particular relates to a test device and method for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft. Background Art

[0002] Electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft are the first choice for solving traffic congestion and future three-dimensional transportation. Electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft refers to a type of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft that uses rechargeable batteries as a driving energy source. It is the hottest category in the track currently known as "electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft", and its representative manufacturers are German companies Volocopter, Lilium, and Joby Aviation of the United States. Electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft are also often called "passenger drones" and can also be used to transport goods. As of 2020, there are more than 160 electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft in the world, mainly concentrated in the United States and Europe. Most of the products are currently in the flight test stage, and a small number of them have been pre-ordered and delivered. It is predicted that by 2030, the electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft industry will create a market size of 300 billion US dollars, which will initially convert part of the market share of ground transportation, aircraft and public transportation.

[0003] During the development of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, it is necessary to test its starting performance, hovering performance, take-off strategy, endurance, etc. However, there are the following problems in the testing process of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft: 1) Safety issues. Under the conditions of unstable system programs, imperfect structural design, immature process and quality, testing prototypes will inevitably hide many risks; 2) Testing and evaluation. During the testing process, it is necessary to test and evaluate the power, economy, start-stop performance and many other performances of the electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, and many parameters need to be measured and recorded.

[0004] In the existing public patents and scientific literature, there are almost no devices for testing the performance of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, while patents with similar application fields include new energy vehicle testing, intelligent connected vehicle testing, fuel cell vehicle testing, etc. For example, the "Testing device for new energy vehicle power" (CN202122063208.6) published by Chongqing University of Technology Qingyan Lingchuang Measurement and Control Technology Co., Ltd., the "A complete vehicle testing system, method and test bench" (CN202210006860.0) disclosed by Alte Automotive Technology Co., Ltd., and the "A vehicle testing method and vehicle test bench" (CN202110591287.X) disclosed by Dongfeng Motor Corporation Dongfeng Nissan Passenger Vehicle Company. None of the above patents have the ability to test the performance of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft. Summary of the invention

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to overcome the deficiencies in the prior art and to provide a test device and method for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft.

[0006] The test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft comprises: a slide rail, a mobile base and a lifting arm, wherein the mobile base is slidably arranged on the slide rail, a force sensor is arranged at one end of the slide rail, and a tension spring is arranged between the force sensor and the mobile base;

[0007] The middle part of the lifting arm is rotatably connected to the top of the mobile base, a balance block is fixed at one end of the lifting arm, and the other end is hingedly connected to the vertical take-off and landing bracket. A tray is installed on the top of the vertical take-off and landing bracket through a six-component force balance, and the aircraft is fixed above the tray.

[0008] Preferably, on both sides of the connection position between the lifting arm and the mobile base, the length toward the vertical take-off and landing bracket is greater than the length toward the balance block.

[0009] Preferably, the bottom of the six-component force balance is fixed to the vertical take-off and landing bracket through an elastic connector; a moving wheel is provided at the bottom of the vertical take-off and landing bracket, and a buffer damper is provided between the vertical take-off and landing bracket and the moving wheel.

[0010] Preferably, an angle limiter is provided at the hinge between the lifting arm and the vertical lift bracket, and a counterweight is provided at the lower end of the vertical lift bracket.

[0011] Preferably, the lifting arm and the slide rail are located in the same vertical plane, and the vertical lifting bracket and the tension spring are respectively located on both sides of the mobile base.

[0012] The electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft performance test method using the test device comprises the following steps:

[0013] Step 1: Fix the aircraft on the tray of the vertical take-off and landing bracket;

[0014] Step 2: Set a balance block at one end of the lifting arm to offset the deadweight of the vertical take-off and landing bracket, and adjust the vertical take-off and landing tray to be parallel to the ground;

[0015] Step 3: Start the aircraft and conduct tests under different working conditions; the force sensor monitors the horizontal force generated by the aircraft, and the six-component force balance monitors the force and torque of the aircraft in three linear directions and three rotational directions;

[0016] Step 4: The aircraft lands, the vertical take-off and landing bracket drops to the ground, the aircraft stops, and the test is completed.

[0017] Preferably, in step three, the test conditions include one or more combinations of take-off, hovering, landing and moving forward.

[0018] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0019] 1) The present invention addresses the gap in the prior art and provides an experimental device for performing performance testing on an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft. A vertical take-off and landing bracket with a six-component force balance is arranged at the end of a lifting arm, and a force sensor is connected to one side of a mobile base through a tension spring to monitor the aircraft. The articulated combination structure of the lifting arm and the mobile base utilizes the principle of a lever to offset the deadweight of the vertical take-off and landing bracket, thereby preventing the aircraft from carrying additional weight during lift. At the same time, the lifting arm plays a role in assisting posture, which is particularly conducive to testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft during startup, start-stop, hovering and descent, and can ensure the personal safety of testers.

[0020] 2) The test device described in the present invention can also be used for cold start testing, take-off strategy verification testing, hovering strategy verification testing, durability testing, endurance testing, acceleration performance testing, energy management, verification algorithms, energy consumption testing, vehicle-road collaboration methods and testing, etc. of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 It is a front view of the testing device of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 2 is a top view of the testing device of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 3 The figure is a flow chart of a testing method based on the testing device of the present invention.

[0024] Explanation of the reference numerals: slide rail 101, mobile base 104, pulley 102, bearing 111, lifting arm 112, reinforcing rib 103, tension spring 106, force sensor 107, vertical lift bracket 116, balance block 110, moving wheel 113, pillar 114, buffer damper 115, counterweight 117, six-component force balance 118, tray 119, elastic connector 120, data acquisition computer 122. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0025] The present invention is further described below in conjunction with embodiments. The description of the following embodiments is only used to help understand the present invention. It should be noted that for ordinary persons in the art, without departing from the principle of the present invention, the present invention can also be modified in some ways, and these improvements and modifications also fall within the scope of protection of the claims of the present invention.

[0026] Embodiment 1

[0027] As an example, Figure 1 and Figure 2As shown, the test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft includes a slide rail 101, a mobile base 104 and a lifting arm 112, wherein the mobile base 104 is slidably arranged on the slide rail 101. The slide rail 101 is fixed on the ground and placed horizontally, and is suitable for stabilizing the entire experimental test device.

[0028] The upper part of the mobile base 104 is provided with a bearing 111 for connecting the lifting arm 112; the mobile base 104 is wide at the bottom and narrow at the top. In this embodiment, the mobile base 104 is 0.8m high, 0.10m wide, 0.40m wide at the bottom, and 0.05m wide at the top. Its bottom is equipped with 4 pulleys with a diameter of 0.05m, which can reduce the resistance when it moves in a straight line in the horizontal direction, and restrict it to move in a straight line in the horizontal direction along the length direction of the slide rail 101. The lower part of the mobile base 104 is reinforced by a reinforcing rib 103 to increase its weight bearing capacity, and the upper part is also provided with a reinforcing rib 103 near the bearing 111 to enhance the strength of the bearing and the base.

[0029] A force sensor 107 is provided at one end of the slide rail 101, and a tension spring 106 is provided between the force sensor 107 and the moving base 104. The force sensor 107 tests the thrust of the aircraft through the horizontal tension measured by the tension spring 106. In the initial state, the length of the tension spring 106 is about half of the slide rail 101, and the moving base 104 is located in the middle of the slide rail 101.

[0030] In this embodiment, the lifting arm 112 is 1.20m long and 0.10m wide. The middle part of the lifting arm 112 is rotatably connected to the top of the mobile base 104. A balance block 110 is fixed to one end of the lifting arm 112, and a vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 is hingedly connected to the other end. The balance block 110 is used to balance the weight of the aircraft and the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116. Specifically, Figure 1 As shown, the lifting arm 112 and the slide rail 101 are located in the same vertical plane, and the vertical lifting bracket 116 and the tension spring 106 are respectively located on both sides of the mobile base 104.

[0031] The aircraft is fixedly mounted on the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 via a six-component force balance 118 , so the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 moves synchronously when the aircraft is in operation, but the force generated by the aircraft on the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 will be monitored and recorded by the six-component force balance 118 .

[0032] The lifting arm 112 completes the lifting task by rotating, so that the aircraft can adjust its height in the vertical direction. The length of the lifting arm 112 and the mobile base 104 on both sides of the connection position toward the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 is greater than the length toward the balance block 110. Its function is to lift the aircraft to the expected height, providing enough space for the lifting and lowering of the aircraft, which is conducive to the testing of the take-off, hovering and landing process. At the same time, the balance block 110 offsets the dead weight of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 through the principle of leverage, avoiding the aircraft from carrying extra weight during lifting. The lifting arm 112 also plays a role in assisting the posture of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116.

[0033] This test device overcomes the dangers in the test process of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, ensures the personal safety of testers, and can record a large amount of test data, making the entire test process safer, more standardized and more reliable. The electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft verified by this test device will have a greatly increased probability of success in actual flight tests, thereby accelerating the research and development process of electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft.

[0034] Embodiment 2

[0035] As another embodiment, this embodiment 2 is proposed on the basis of embodiment 1, and is a more specific test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, wherein the structure of its vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 includes moving wheels 113, pillars 114, buffer dampers 115, elastic connectors 120, six-component force balance 118, and counterweights 117.

[0036] In this embodiment, the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 is 0.5m long and 0.10m wide, and is used to install the aircraft to be tested. A tray 119 is installed on the top of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 through a six-component force balance 118. The bottom of the six-component force balance 118 is fixed to the vertical take-off bracket 116 through an elastic connector 120, and the top surface is connected to the tray 119. The aircraft is fixed above the tray 119. The tray 119 not only provides a mounting point for the aircraft, but also ensures that the aircraft is stable in position when performing complex dynamic tests.

[0037] In this embodiment, the six-component force balance 118 is box-shaped or square, with the end face length and width both being 56 mm and the height being 11.2 mm. By using the six-component force balance 118, the forces and moments of the aircraft in three linear directions and three rotational directions can be measured.

[0038] An angle limiter is provided at the hinge of the lifting arm 112 and the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116, which can limit the tilt angle of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 to between 0° and 30°, ensuring that the aircraft and the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 remain within a safe tilt range during the test, avoiding test errors or device damage caused by excessive angles.

[0039] Figure 1 In the embodiment, a counterweight 117 is provided in the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 to simulate the payload of the aircraft, so that the test conditions are closer to the actual flight state. In this embodiment, it is proposed that the counterweight 117 can be arranged below the hinge between the lifting arm 112 and the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 to further prevent the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 from overturning.

[0040] A moving wheel 113 is provided at the bottom of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116. The moving wheel 113 may be a single one or two side by side. A buffer damper 115 is provided between the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 and the moving wheel 113. The moving wheel 113 is connected to the buffer damper 115 above through a support 114. The purpose of the buffer damper 115 is to cope with the impact of an accidental fall, absorb the impact force generated when the aircraft accidentally falls or undergoes a high-intensity test, and support the fall in the event of an accident so that the aircraft being tested is not damaged.

[0041] It also includes a dedicated data acquisition computer 122, which is used to receive and process data from the force sensor 107 and the six-component force balance 118. The force sensor 107 is responsible for monitoring and recording various forces on the aircraft during the test, while the six-component force balance 118 provides accurate force and torque measurement of the aircraft in three linear directions and three rotational directions in six degrees of freedom.

[0042] It should be noted that the parts in this embodiment that are the same or similar to those in the first embodiment can be referenced to each other and will not be described in detail in this application.

[0043] Embodiment 3

[0044] As another embodiment, this embodiment 3 proposes, based on the embodiment 1, a method for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft using such a test device, such as Figure 3 As shown, the following steps are included:

[0045] Step 1: Fix the aircraft on the tray 119 of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116; the plane of the tray 119 is kept parallel to the ground. Start the power supply of the test device of the present invention and the data acquisition computer 122, and ensure that all force sensors 107, six-component force balance 118, data acquisition system, etc. are working normally.

[0046] Step 2: A balance block 110 is arranged at one end of the lifting arm 112 to offset the deadweight of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116, and the vertical take-off and landing tray 119 is adjusted to be parallel to the ground;

[0047] Step 3: Start the aircraft and conduct tests under different operating conditions, including takeoff, hovering, landing, forward movement, and other single and combined operating conditions.

[0048] The force sensor 107 monitors the horizontal force generated by the aircraft. When the aircraft generates thrust, the mobile base 104 moves horizontally along the slide rail 101. At this time, the tension spring 106 will generate a horizontal tension that offsets the horizontal tension of the aircraft, so that the mobile base 104 reaches a balanced position. The tension generated by the tension spring 106 is transmitted to the force sensor 107 to measure the horizontal thrust of the aircraft.

[0049] The six-component force balance 118 monitors the forces and moments of the aircraft in three linear directions and three rotational directions. The internal state data of the electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft is recorded by itself.

[0050] Step 4: The aircraft lands. The bottom of the vertical take-off and landing bracket 116 lands on the ground, the aircraft stops, and the test is completed.

[0051] If the monitored six-component force data are found to be abnormal, the test is terminated.

[0052] It should be noted that the parts in this embodiment that are the same or similar to those in Embodiments 1 and 2 can be referenced to each other and will not be described in detail in this application.

[0053] 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.

Claims

1. A test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft, characterized in that: include: A slide rail, a mobile base and a lifting arm, wherein the mobile base is slidably arranged on the slide rail, a force sensor is arranged at one end of the slide rail, and a tension spring is arranged between the force sensor and the mobile base; The middle part of the lifting arm is rotatably connected to the top of the mobile base, a balance block is fixed at one end of the lifting arm, and the other end is hingedly connected to the vertical take-off and landing bracket. A tray is installed on the top of the vertical take-off and landing bracket through a six-component force balance, and the aircraft is fixed above the tray.

2. The test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 1, characterized in that: On both sides of the connection position between the lifting arm and the mobile base, the length toward the vertical take-off and landing bracket is greater than the length toward the balance block.

3. The test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 1, characterized in that: The bottom of the six-component force balance is fixed on the vertical take-off and landing bracket through an elastic connector; a moving wheel is arranged at the bottom of the vertical take-off and landing bracket, and a buffer damper is arranged between the vertical take-off and landing bracket and the moving wheel.

4. The test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 1, characterized in that: An angle limiter is arranged at the hinge of the lifting arm and the vertical lift bracket, and a counterweight is arranged at the lower end of the vertical lift bracket.

5. The test device for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft according to claim 1, characterized in that: The lifting arm and the slide rail are located in the same vertical plane, and the vertical lifting bracket and the tension spring are respectively located on both sides of the moving base.

6. A method for testing the performance of an electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft using the test device described in any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: Step 1: Fix the aircraft on the tray of the vertical take-off and landing bracket; Step 2: Set a balance block at one end of the lifting arm to offset the deadweight of the vertical take-off and landing bracket, and adjust the vertical take-off and landing tray to be parallel to the ground; Step 3: Start the aircraft and conduct tests under different working conditions; The force sensor monitors the horizontal force generated by the aircraft, and the six-component force balance monitors the forces and moments of the aircraft in three linear directions and three rotational directions; Step 4: The aircraft lands, the vertical take-off and landing bracket drops to the ground, the aircraft stops, and the test is completed.

7. The electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft performance testing method according to claim 6, characterized in that: In step three, the test conditions include one or more combinations of takeoff, hovering, landing and forward movement.

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