Large-wingspan curled wing unmanned aerial vehicle air delivery system

Abstract

The invention relates to a large-wingspan curled wing unmanned aerial vehicle aerial delivery system which comprises an unmanned aerial vehicle, a delivery carrier and a delivery control system. The unmanned aerial vehicle is hung on the throwing carrier in a wing curled state; the unmanned aerial vehicle automatically flies after the constraint of the release carrier is released; the delivery carrier carries the unmanned aerial vehicle in a wing curled state to reach a specified delivery height; and after the unmanned aerial vehicle reaches the specified delivery height, the delivery control system controls the unmanned aerial vehicle to realize wing unfolding in a curled state, adjusts the attitude of the unmanned aerial vehicle to be stable, and then relieves the constraint of the unmanned aerial vehicle and the delivery carrier. According to the large-wingspan light low-wing-load unmanned aerial vehicle, efficient storage is achieved after the wings are curled, the scheme that a carrier is put in the air is utilized, the defect that traditional ground take-off and landing have high requirements for airspace, runways and weather is overcome, and air deployment can be rapidly achieved. The unmanned aerial vehicle is suitable for various carriers such as aerostats, airplanes and rockets, cluster launching can be achieved, and the use flexibility of the large-wingspan light low-wing-load unmanned aerial vehicle is greatly improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention belongs to the technical field of unmanned aerial vehicles and relates to an aerial delivery system for a large-wingspan curled-wing unmanned aerial vehicle. Background Art

[0002] At present, the main technical route for the design of ultra-long flight time UAVs usually adopts a large aspect ratio aerodynamic layout combined with a lightweight, low wing-loaded structural design to obtain a high lift-to-drag ratio. If combined with the use of solar energy as a power source, the long-term endurance of the UAV can be achieved. However, this layout has several difficulties in use. First, the take-off and landing phase of the UAV is greatly affected by the near-ground wind field. Ground gusts and side winds affect the safety of take-off and landing, and take-off and landing require waiting for a suitable release window. Second, lightweight, low-wing-loaded, large-aspect-ratio UAVs have a low climb rate. It usually takes several hours from take-off to climbing to the cruising altitude (generally above the troposphere), which has high requirements for clear airspace and affects deployment efficiency. Third, large-wingspan UAVs have high requirements for the use of hangars and runways, and high requirements for storage, transportation and other guarantees. Summary of the invention

[0003] The technical problem solved by the present invention is: to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art, to propose an aerial delivery system for large-wingspan curled-wing UAVs, to provide feasible storage, transportation, distribution, and recycling solutions for curled storage UAVs, and to improve the utilization efficiency of large-wingspan, lightweight, and low-wing-load UAVs.

[0004] The solution of the present invention is:

[0005] An aerial delivery system for a large-wingspan curled-wing UAV, comprising a UAV, a delivery vehicle, and a delivery control system;

[0006] The drone is mounted on the delivery vehicle with its wings curled up; after being released from the delivery vehicle, the drone flies automatically;

[0007] The delivery vehicle carries the drone with its wings folded to the designated delivery height;

[0008] After the UAV reaches the specified delivery height, the delivery control system controls the UAV to unfold its curled wings and adjust the UAV's attitude to be stable, and then releases the constraints between the UAV and the delivery vehicle.

[0009] Preferably, the UAV comprises wings, a nose, a fuselage, a tail strut, a V-shaped tail, a power strut, a rear fuselage lifting ring, and a front fuselage lifting ring;

[0010] The nose, fuselage and tail strut are connected in sequence and arranged along the central axis of the wing. The V-shaped tail is located at the tail of the tail strut. Power struts are symmetrically installed on the wings on both sides of the fuselage. The front fuselage lifting ring is fixedly connected to the fuselage, and the rear fuselage lifting ring is fixedly connected to the tail strut. There are holes above the rear fuselage lifting ring and the front fuselage lifting ring for ropes to pass through.

[0011] The wing comprises a spar, a bendable rib and a skin, wherein the spar is a load-bearing member of the wing and is made of carbon fiber material, comprising two identical upper and lower Ω-shaped pod petals and a pin, wherein the pin is used to fix and connect the edges of the two pod petals; after pressure is applied to the spar as a whole, the upper and lower Ω-shaped pod petals are closely fitted, and the spar is curled into a ball by a roller to achieve curling and storage of a large-span wing; a series of ribs are connected to the spar at equal intervals along the wing span, and the ribs are covered with a flexible skin to form the upper and lower surfaces of the wing; the ribs are made of carbon fiber material, and the ribs and the skin can be flattened together with the spar;

[0012] Once the restraints are released, the wings can unfold automatically.

[0013] Preferably, the nose shape adopts a streamlined design, and is internally equipped with avionics equipment including navigation, flight control, mission control, load system and aircraft status monitoring equipment.

[0014] Preferably, the delivery control system includes a delivery controller and a rope restraint system;

[0015] The rope restraint system includes a wingtip restraint rope, a front fuselage restraint rope, and a rear fuselage restraint rope; the wingtip restraint rope connects the wingtip to the delivery rack, and a first rope cutter is provided on the rope; the front fuselage restraint rope connects the front fuselage lifting ring to the delivery rack, and a second rope cutter is provided on the rope; the rear fuselage restraint rope connects the rear fuselage lifting ring to the delivery rack, and a third rope cutter is provided on the rope;

[0016] Before the wings are unfolded, the wingtip restraint ropes are in a taut state, supporting the weight of the entire aircraft; a portion of the front and rear fuselage restraint ropes are curled together with the wings, and the remaining portion extends from the front of the wings and is connected to the launch rack. At this time, the front and rear fuselage restraint ropes are in a relaxed state without stress;

[0017] After the wing curling constraint is released, the wing is unfolded vertically downward under the action of the wingtip restraint rope. After being fully unfolded, the aircraft is in a vertical state under the action of the three restraint ropes. At this time, the three restraint ropes are all in a stressed state;

[0018] The ground control station sends a rope cutting command to the delivery controller through the UAV flight control system. The delivery controller sends a cutting command to the first cutter. The first rope cutter works, the wingtip restraint rope is disconnected, and the wing rolls around the fuselage axis under the action of gravity and the front and rear fuselage restraint ropes, and gradually swings to a horizontal state.

[0019] The status monitoring equipment on the drone monitors the pitch and roll status of the drone in real time and sends it to the ground. After the pitch and roll of the drone are stable, the ground sends cutting instructions to the second and third rope cutting controllers at the same time, the front fuselage restraint ropes and the rear fuselage restraint ropes are disconnected, and the drone dives down and levels out. At the same time, after the second and third rope cutters cut the ropes, the drone propellers start at a set time interval, and the drone's pitch attitude gradually levels out and turns to a level flight state. After that, the drone is controlled by the drone flight control to fly automatically.

[0020] Preferably, the initial pitch angle of the drone is adjusted by adjusting the length of the front fuselage restraint rope and the rear fuselage restraint rope.

[0021] Preferably, the delivery vehicle is implemented by, but not limited to, a booster rocket, an aerostat, a manned aircraft, an unmanned aircraft, or a carrier aircraft; the delivery vehicle can carry one or more unmanned aircraft with wings curled at a time.

[0022] Preferably, when the aerostat is an airship, the delivery vehicle carries a plurality of UAVs with wings curled up via a pod.

[0023] Preferably, when the aerostat is a balloon, the drone is mounted vertically with its nose facing upward, and multiple drones are arranged in series from top to bottom, with the center of gravity of the balloon and each drone on the same center line;

[0024] The drone is connected to the corresponding delivery rack through a restraint rope that passes through the inner cavity of the fuselage; after the lower drone completes the delivery, the upper drone continues to deliver.

[0025] Preferably, when the delivery vehicle adopts a booster rocket, the booster rocket includes a rocket booster, a transition section, a fairing section, and a delivery rack, and two drones with curled wings are integrated in the fairing; the rocket booster and the transition section are connected by pyrotechnic explosive bolts, and after reaching the set position, the pyrotechnic is ignited, the rocket booster is separated, and the transition section and the fairing section fly under the action of inertia; the outer skirt of the transition section can be opened outward to expand the windward area and assist in decelerating the remaining projectile. After deceleration to a predetermined range, the deceleration parachute bag in the transition section is opened, the deceleration parachute is ejected, the deceleration parachute is opened backwards, and the deceleration parachute-fairing combination continues to decelerate. After reaching the safe deployment speed of the drone, the pyrotechnic in the fairing is ignited, and the fairing is ejected outward in two petals and separated, revealing the curled-wing drone contained inside, and the drone completes the aerial delivery according to the command.

[0026] Preferably, each drone is connected to the delivery vehicle via a delivery rack.

[0027] The beneficial effects of the present invention compared with the prior art are:

[0028] (1) The present invention overcomes the shortcomings of traditional large-wingspan, low-speed UAVs that require high ground airspace security for ground takeoff and landing. Specifically, in the past, large-wingspan, lightweight, low-dynamic UAVs usually had large wingspans (up to tens of meters), and had high requirements for ground hangars, runways, storage, and transportation. In addition, the takeoff and landing phase of the UAV is easily affected by the unstable wind field near the ground, and the takeoff and landing window is limited. It usually takes several hours for the UAV to climb to an altitude of more than ten kilometers after taking off from the ground. The present invention proposes a solution to efficiently store large-wingspan, lightweight, low-wing-load UAVs by curling their wings and using a vehicle to drop them in the air, which overcomes the shortcomings of traditional ground takeoff and landing that require high airspace, runways, and weather, and can quickly achieve aerial deployment.

[0029] (2) The aerial delivery solution proposed in the present invention is suitable for various types of vehicles such as aerostats, airborne vehicles, rockets, etc., and can achieve cluster delivery, greatly expanding the flexibility of use of large-wingspan, lightweight, low-wing-load UAVs. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0030] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a curled-wing UAV and its aerial delivery system;

[0031] Figure 2 The schematic diagram of the curled-wing UAV curled-up unfolding system;

[0032] Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the connection of the restraint rope of the curled-wing UAV in the curled state;

[0033] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the curled-wing drone unfolding in the air;

[0034] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the state of the curled-wing UAV after its wings are unfolded and leveled in the air and before it is separated from the carrier;

[0035] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of using an airship as an aerial carrier to carry a large number of curled-wing drones for aerial delivery;

[0036] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of using a high-altitude balloon to simultaneously mount multiple curled-wing drones for aerial delivery;

[0037] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of a system that uses a rocket as a carrier to carry a curled-wing UAV;

[0038] Fig. 9 Schematic diagram of the rocket booster separation and the speed brake opening;

[0039] Fig.10 Schematic diagram of the opening of the rocket parachute;

[0040] Fig.11This is a schematic diagram of the fairing ejection of the rocket launch scheme. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0042] like Figure 1 As shown, a large wingspan curled wing UAV aerial delivery system includes a UAV 1-1, a delivery vehicle 1-2, and a delivery control system 1-3. The UAV is carried by the delivery vehicle to a specified delivery height in a curled wing state, and under the action of the delivery control system controlled by a series of restraint ropes and a rope cutting program, the curled wing is unfolded and the attitude of the UAV is adjusted to be stable. Finally, under the ground control command, the UAV is released from the vehicle constraint, and the nose dives down to change to automatic flight.

[0043] like Figure 2 As shown, the UAV includes wings 2-1, nose 2-2, fuselage 2-3, tail 2-4, and V-shaped tail 2-5. The wing spar adopts a flattenable curled pod-shaped beam, combined with flexible and bendable ribs and skin design, which can realize the wing curling into a ball under the action of external force, and the wing can automatically unfold under the action of elastic restoring force after the constraint is released. The nose 2-2, fuselage 2-3, and tail strut 2-4 are fixedly connected in sequence and arranged along the central axis of the wing. The V-shaped tail 2-5 is located at the tail of the tail strut 2-4, and power struts 2-6 are symmetrically installed on the wings on both sides of the fuselage 2-3; the front fuselage lifting ring 2-8 and the rear fuselage lifting ring 2-7 are fixedly connected to the fuselage and the tail strut respectively, and a hole is opened on the top for ropes to pass through. The nose adopts a streamlined design, and is equipped with avionics equipment including navigation, flight control, mission control machine, load system and aircraft status monitoring equipment. The wing includes a spar, a bendable rib and a skin, wherein the spar is a load-bearing member of the wing, made of carbon fiber material, and composed of two identical upper and lower Ω-shaped pod petals, the edges of which are fixedly connected by pins to form a thin-walled pod-shaped beam structure. After a certain pressure is applied to the Ω-shaped pod petals, the Ω-shaped pod petals can be changed from Ω-shaped to flat-shaped, and can be restored to Ω-shaped under the action of elastic restoring force after the external force is released. After the spar is subjected to pressure from top to bottom as a whole, the upper and lower Ω-shaped pod petals fit tightly, and the spar can be curled into a ball by a roller to realize the curling and storage of a large-span wing. A series of ribs are connected to the spar at equal intervals along the wing span. The ribs are made of carbon fiber material, are flexible, and can be flattened together with the spar. The ribs are covered with a flexible skin to form the upper and lower surfaces of the wing. The wing is curled into a ball under the action of an external force, and can be automatically unfolded after the constraint is released.

[0044] The UAV adopts a modular design with detachable components. Under the wing, the fuselage and power struts 2-6 are fastened to the wing with reserved rods, and curled together with the wing. After curling, the fuselage and power struts are connected through the joints of the reserved rods to realize the overall assembly of the aircraft.

[0045] The V-shaped tail adopts a folding propeller design. When the drone is curled up, the propeller folds backwards on the power support rod. After the motor is started, the propeller blades automatically open under the action of centrifugal force.

[0046] The delivery vehicle refers to a release platform that can quickly carry a curled-up drone from the ground to the air. Since the drone adopts a curled-up wing design, its storage volume is small after curling up. It can be delivered in a variety of ways, such as by airships such as high-altitude balloons or airships, rocket propulsion, and manned / unmanned aircraft. The delivery vehicle can carry one or more curled-up drones at a time, and after reaching the predetermined delivery height, it can control the delivery vehicle speed by appropriate means to keep the dynamic pressure within the set range, thereby meeting the mechanical environment requirements for the unfolding of the drone wings.

[0047] like Figure 2 The diagram of the UAV with rolled wings in the unfolded state. When rolling, the UAV nose 2-2, tail support rod 2-4, left and right power support rods 2-6, etc. are removed. The UAV wing spar can be flattened under pressure and rolled into a ball under the action of the auxiliary roller, similar to the process of "rolling a pancake". During the rolling process, the restraint ropes are connected to the two rings on the fuselage in front and behind the wing. The two restraint ropes are roughly the same length. The restraint ropes are rolled together with the wing to ensure that the ends of the ropes extend out from the front of the wing at the same time after rolling ( Figure 3 ), and finally add a restraint rope to the wingtip, forming the simplest three restraint rope deployment plan. The three restraint ropes are connected with rope cutters, and the automatic unfolding and leveling of the wings are realized through step-by-step work.

[0048] The delivery control system is composed of a set of rope restraint systems and controllers to ensure that the wings of the drone are unfolded in an orderly manner and adjust the drone's posture to a critical posture for cutting the rope for delivery. It includes a drone hanging point, a restraint rope, a delivery rack, a rope cutter, a controller, etc., wherein a hanging point is set on the wing tip and the fuselage of the drone, and the delivery rack is connected by a restraint rope, and the delivery rack is fixed to the carrier. When the wing begins to unfold, the drone wing is vertically unfolded downward under the restraint of the wing tip. After the wing is fully unfolded, the wing tip restraint rope is unhooked, and under the action of the fuselage restraint rope, the drone wing is leveled from a vertical state. Under the action of the control command, the cutter synchronously cuts the restraint rope, and the drone dives to level flight to complete the delivery.

[0049] like Figure 3As shown, the rope restraint system is implemented by three restraint ropes and three rope cutters. The specific process of the curled wing UAV wing unfolding, attitude adjustment and separation from the delivery vehicle is as follows: the wingtip restraint rope 3-1 connects the wingtip to the delivery rack, and the rope is provided with a first rope cutter 3-2. The front fuselage restraint rope 3-3 connects the front fuselage lifting ring 2-8 to the delivery rack 3-7, and the rope is provided with a second rope cutter 3-6. The rear fuselage restraint rope 3-4 connects the rear fuselage lifting ring 2-7 to the delivery rack 3-7, and the rope is provided with a third rope cutter 3-5. Before the wing unfolds, the vertical restraint rope 3-1 is in a taut state, the front fuselage restraint rope 3-3 and the rear fuselage restraint rope 3-4 curl with the wing and are in a relaxed state. After the rear fuselage restraint rope is curled, it extends from the leading edge of the wing to ensure that the front and rear fuselage restraint ropes do not interfere with the wing when the wing unfolds. After the wing roll is released, the wing is unfolded vertically downward under the action of the vertical restraint rope. After it is fully unfolded, the aircraft is in a vertical state under the action of the three restraint ropes ( Figure 4 ), all three restraint ropes are under stress. Then, under the control of the controller, the rope cutter at the wingtip restraint rope works, the wingtip restraint rope is disconnected, and the wing rolls around the fuselage axis under the action of gravity and the front and rear fuselage restraint ropes, and gradually swings to a horizontal state ( Figure 5 The onboard equipment monitors the pitch and roll status of the aircraft. When the conditions for release are met, the propellers are started under the control of the ground control command, and the rope cutters on the front and rear fuselages are activated at the same time. The UAV is disconnected from the carrier, drops altitude, and changes to a level flight.

[0050] The pitch angle of the drone's critical state can be set by adjusting the length of the restraint ropes at the front and rear of the fuselage. The rope cutter is used to cut the rope and release the restraints at both ends of the rope. It works under the command of the drone control system and can be electromagnetic, mechanical, and other different forms according to the working mode.

[0051] The above three-point release scheme can adjust the initial release pitch angle of the drone by adjusting the lengths of the two restraint ropes 3-3 and 3-4 at the front and rear of the preset fuselage. During the release process, the rope cutters at the front and rear fuselages are required to have good response consistency and response synchronization to ensure that the drone can start to dive and level at the set initial state after detachment.

[0052] Aerostats such as the airship 6-1 with a larger load-bearing capacity are used as aerial motherships to carry and launch curled-wing UAVs. The curled-wing UAVs have a small storage size, and the pod 6-2 can integrate and carry a large number of curled-wing UAVs 6-3. The carrier can stay in the air for a long time and realize regional maneuvers. According to needs, it can realize the aerial cluster launch of wide-area UAVs, or achieve long-term regional airborne stay in a long-term no-supply state.

[0053] The UAV with curled wings has a high storage ratio, ensuring that it is suitable for various types of delivery vehicles, and can carry multiple at a time as needed. The delivery process is explained by taking a high-altitude balloon carrying multiple UAVs with curled wings for aerial delivery. The UAV adopts a vertical mounting scheme with the nose facing up. Take the serial mounting of two UAVs with curled wings as an example (such as Figure 7 ), keep the center of gravity of the balloon 7-1, the upper curled wing drone 7-2 and the lower curled wing drone 7-3 on the same center line to ensure the stability of the delivery system. The two drones are delivered in sequence, first the lower drone is delivered, and then the rope cutter 7-8 on the restraint rope 7-9 between the two drones works, and the other auxiliary mechanisms 7-5 of the lower drone are detached, ensuring that the deployment and delivery process of the upper drone is not affected.

[0054] Each drone attitude control and deployment step is controlled by four restraint ropes and their corresponding rope cutters, namely, the cylinder restraint rope 7-7 and the cylinder restraint rope cutter 7-6, the wingtip restraint rope 3-1 and the wingtip restraint rope cutter 3-2, the front fuselage restraint rope 3-3 and the front fuselage restraint rope cutter 3-6, and the rear fuselage restraint rope 3-4 and the rear fuselage restraint rope cutter 3-5. The cylinder restraint rope connects the drone cylinder to the delivery rack. Before delivery, only this restraint rope is stressed, and the other three restraint ropes are not stressed and are in a relaxed state, ensuring that the drone is in a vertical mounting state with the nose facing up.

[0055] When the launch begins, the cylinder restraint rope cutter 7-6 is activated, the cylinder restraint rope 7-7 is disconnected, the wing tip restraint rope 3-1 is short and is first stressed, the nose of the aircraft flips over and becomes horizontal ( Figure 3 ) to ensure that the drone's wings are able to unfold vertically downward. Then, under the action of the wingtips, front and rear fuselage restraint ropes and the rope cutters on them, the drone can unfold its wings, level its attitude, and unhook and separate.

[0056] A high-altitude balloon is used as a launch vehicle. The model of the high-altitude balloon and the corresponding inflation volume can be selected according to the overall weight of the curled-wing UAV and the launch height of the UAV. After the curled-wing UAV is launched, the high-altitude balloon continues to rise until it bursts.

[0057] In addition to low-speed aerostats such as balloons and airships, curled-wing drones can also be quickly delivered by high-speed vehicles such as rockets and airborne vehicles. The following uses the rocket delivery solution as an example to illustrate the process. Figure 8This is a schematic diagram of using a rocket to carry two curled-wing UAVs 8-3 and 8-5 at the same time. The system consists of a rocket booster 8-1, a transition section 8-2 including a deceleration plate and a deceleration parachute bag, and a fairing 8-6 including two curled-wing UAVs and their attached delivery mechanisms. 8-4 is the delivery stand for the UAV 8-3. The rocket reaches the predetermined area and altitude according to the set instructions. At this time, the speed is relatively fast. The explosive bolts connecting the rocket booster 8-1 and the remaining part of the rocket (the transition section and the fairing) are ignited, the booster is separated, and the transition section 8-2 and the fairing part assembly 8-6 continue to move without power under the action of inertia ( Fig. 9 ), under the action of gravity and air resistance, the assembly begins to move downward after reaching the ballistic peak. To ensure rapid deceleration of the system, the skirt 9-1 of the transition section that can expand outward is opened to increase the windward area of ​​the system, increase air resistance, and assist the assembly in decelerating. When the set parachute opening conditions are reached, the parachute bag in the transition section pops out, the deceleration parachute opens backwards, and the deceleration parachute 10-1 and the fairing as a whole ( Fig.10 ) Rapid deceleration, the air resistance and gravity of the parachute and fairing assembly are equivalent, and the assembly falls at a stable speed. When the system speed reaches the speed range where the drone can be deployed in the air, the fairing separates outward in two pieces 11-3, revealing the two curled-wing drones wrapped inside. The drone deployment process is then the same as above, and the aerial attitude adjustment is completed according to the set program. The restraint rope and rope cutter act in multiple steps to complete the drone launch. Fig.11 This is a schematic diagram of the fairing ejection of the rocket launch scheme.

[0058] The scheme of mounting a UAV carrier with curled wings on the wing or belly of a manned or unmanned aircraft as a delivery vehicle. A single aircraft can carry multiple carriers. After the carrier is jettisoned by the aircraft, it is decelerated by a deceleration parachute, the pyrotechnics are ignited, the protective cover is jettisoned, and the UAV is exposed. Under the action of the delivery control system, the wings are unfolded, the attitude is adjusted, the restraint rope is unhooked, and the UAV dives and levels off to complete the delivery. The scheme of delivery by carrying a carrier on a manned aircraft / unmanned aircraft, the carrier can be unpowered or rocket-assisted. In the unpowered scheme, after the carrier is separated from the carrier, it is decelerated to the set UAV deployment conditions under the action of a deceleration parachute, and then the carrier protective cover is separated to expose the UAV, and the UAV is deployed in the air according to the set program. In the rocket-assisted extended-range scheme, after the carrier jettisons the carrier, the carrier moves away from the carrier under the help of rockets, and the delivery area and altitude can be further adjusted. Rocket-assisted delivery can carry the UAV to an altitude that the carrier cannot reach to complete the delivery. Use a rocket-assisted extended-range launch vehicle to expand the distance and altitude range of aerial delivery.

[0059] In order to realize the rapid aerial deployment of large-wingspan, lightweight, low-wing-load UAVs, the present invention adopts the design technology of flattenable curled wing structure to realize the efficient curling and storage of large-wingspan UAVs, and uses a delivery vehicle to quickly deliver the UAVs into the air, thereby reducing the requirements of large-wingspan, lightweight, low-wing-load UAVs for sites, weather, and support. The present invention relates to such curled-wing UAVs, and proposes a system and method for using various aerial vehicles such as balloons, airships, rockets, and carrier aircraft to realize the rapid launch of curled-wing UAVs, quickly reach a designated area, and realize aerial deployment and delivery.

[0060] The drone of the present invention refers to a drone whose wing spar can be flattened and then curled, and can return to a normal state under the action of elastic restoring force after the constraint is released. The flexible leading edge, wing ribs, and skin design enable the large-wingspan wing to achieve aerodynamic conformal and efficient storage. For this type of drone, the present invention proposes a solution that uses a restraint rope and a rope cutter to achieve drone wing deployment, attitude adjustment, dive and leveling, and complete aerial delivery. The delivery solution proposed by the present invention has a wide range of applications and is applicable to low-speed airships such as balloons and airships, as well as high-speed airships such as rockets and airborne vehicles, and can carry one or more curled-wing drones at a time. According to needs, the present invention can transform aerial platforms with large loads, such as airships, into air carriers for launching large quantities of curled-wing drones, thereby realizing wide-area, continuous, and clustered large-wingspan, lightweight, and low-wing-load drones for rapid aerial deployment.

[0061] Parts of the present invention that are not described in detail belong to common knowledge among those skilled in the art.

Claims

1. A large wingspan curled wing UAV aerial delivery system, characterized in that: Including drones, delivery vehicles, and delivery control systems; The drone is mounted on the delivery vehicle with its wings curled up; after being released from the delivery vehicle, the drone flies automatically; The delivery vehicle carries the UAV with its wings folded to the designated delivery height; After the UAV reaches the specified delivery height, the delivery control system controls the UAV to unfold its curled wings and adjust the UAV's attitude to be stable, and then releases the constraints between the UAV and the delivery vehicle.

2. The large-wingspan curled-wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The unmanned aerial vehicle comprises a wing (2-1), a nose (2-2), a fuselage (2-3), a tail support rod (2-4), a V-shaped tail wing (2-5), a power support rod (2-6), a rear fuselage hanging ring (2-7), and a front fuselage hanging ring (2-8); The nose (2-2), the fuselage (2-3) and the tail strut (2-4) are fixedly connected in sequence and arranged along the central axis of the wing; the V-shaped tail wing (2-5) is located at the tail of the tail strut (2-4); power struts (2-6) are symmetrically installed on the wings on both sides of the fuselage (2-3); the front fuselage lifting ring (2-8) is fixedly connected to the fuselage, the rear fuselage lifting ring (2-7) is fixedly connected to the tail strut; holes are opened above the rear fuselage lifting ring (2-7) and the front fuselage lifting ring (2-8) for ropes to pass through; The wing (2-1) comprises a wing spar, a bendable rib and a skin, wherein the wing spar is a load-bearing component of the wing and is made of carbon fiber material, comprising two identical upper and lower Ω-shaped pod petals and a pin, wherein the pin is used to fix and connect the edges of the two pod petals; after pressure is applied to the wing spar as a whole, the upper and lower Ω-shaped pod petals are tightly fitted, and the wing spar is curled into a ball by a roller to achieve curling and storage of a large-span wing; a series of wing ribs are connected to the wing spar at equal intervals along the wing span, and the wing ribs are covered with a flexible skin to form the upper and lower surfaces of the wing; the wing ribs are made of carbon fiber material, and the wing ribs and the skin can be flattened together with the wing spar; Once the restraints are released, the wings can unfold automatically.

3. The large-wingspan curled-wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The nose (2-2) has a streamlined design and is internally equipped with avionics equipment including navigation, flight control, mission control, load system and aircraft status monitoring equipment.

4. The large-wingspan curled-wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The delivery control system includes a delivery controller and a rope restraint system; The rope restraint system comprises a wingtip restraint rope (3-1), a front fuselage restraint rope (3-3), and a rear fuselage restraint rope (3-4); the wingtip restraint rope (3-1) connects the wingtip to the delivery rack (3-7), and is provided with a first rope cutter (3-2); the front fuselage restraint rope (3-3) connects the front fuselage lifting ring (2-8) to the delivery rack, and is provided with a second rope cutter (3-6); the rear fuselage restraint rope (3-4) connects the rear fuselage lifting ring (2-7) to the delivery rack, and is provided with a third rope cutter (3-5); Before the wings are unfolded, the wingtip restraint rope (3-1) is in a taut stressed state, supporting the weight of the entire aircraft; a portion of the front fuselage restraint rope (3-3) and the rear fuselage restraint rope (3-4) is curled together with the wings, and the remaining portion extends from the front of the wings and is connected to the delivery rack. At this time, the front fuselage restraint rope (3-3) and the rear fuselage restraint rope (3-4) are in a relaxed and unstressed state; After the curling constraint of the wing is released, the wing (2-1) is unfolded vertically downward under the action of the wingtip restraint rope. After being fully unfolded, the aircraft is in a vertical state under the action of the three restraint ropes, and at this time, the three restraint ropes are all in a stressed state; The ground control station sends a rope cutting command to the delivery controller through the UAV flight control system, and the delivery controller sends a cutting command to the first cutter, the first rope cutter (3-2) works, the wingtip restraint rope is disconnected, and the wing rolls around the fuselage axis under the action of gravity and the front and rear fuselage restraint ropes, and gradually swings to a horizontal state; The status monitoring equipment on the drone monitors the pitch and roll status of the drone in real time and sends it to the ground. After the pitch and roll of the drone are stable, the ground sends a cutting command to the second and third rope cutting controllers at the same time, and the front fuselage restraint rope (3-3) and the rear fuselage restraint rope (3-4) are disconnected, and the drone dives down and levels off. At the same time, after the second and third rope cutting devices cut the ropes, the drone propellers are started at a set time interval, and the drone's pitch attitude gradually levels off and turns to a level flight state. After that, the drone is controlled by the drone flight control to fly automatically.

5. The large-wingspan curled-wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 4, characterized in that: By adjusting the length of the front fuselage restraint rope (3-3) and the rear fuselage restraint rope (3-4), the initial pitch angle of the UAV is adjusted.

6. The large wingspan curled wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The delivery vehicle is implemented by, but not limited to, a booster rocket, an aerostat, a manned aircraft, an unmanned aircraft, or a carrier aircraft; the delivery vehicle can carry one or more unmanned aircraft with wings curled at a time.

7. The large-wingspan curled-wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 6, characterized in that: When the aerostat is an airship, the delivery vehicle carries a number of UAVs with wings folded via a pod.

8. The large-wingspan curled-wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 6, characterized in that: When the aerostat is a balloon, the drone is mounted vertically with its nose facing upward, and multiple drones are arranged in series from top to bottom, with the center of gravity of the balloon and each drone on the same center line; The drone is connected to the corresponding delivery rack through a restraint rope that passes through the inner cavity of the fuselage; after the lower drone completes the delivery, the upper drone continues to deliver.

9. The large-wingspan curled-wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 6, characterized in that: When a booster rocket is used as a delivery vehicle, the booster rocket comprises a rocket booster (8-1), a transition section (8-2), a fairing section (8-6), and a delivery frame (8-4); two unmanned aerial vehicles with their wings curled are integrated in the fairing; the rocket booster and the transition section are connected by explosive bolts made of pyrotechnics; after reaching a set position, the pyrotechnics are ignited, the rocket booster is separated, and the transition section and the fairing section fly under the action of inertia; the outer skirt of the transition section can be opened outwards to expand the windward area and assist the remaining missile body in decelerating; after decelerating to a predetermined range, the deceleration parachute bag in the transition section is opened, the deceleration parachute is ejected, the deceleration parachute is opened backwards, and the deceleration parachute-fairing combination continues to decelerate; after reaching the safe deployment speed of the unmanned aerial vehicle, the pyrotechnics in the fairing are ignited, the fairing is ejected outwards in two petals and separated, exposing the unmanned aerial vehicle with curled wings contained therein, and the unmanned aerial vehicle completes the aerial delivery according to the command.

10. The large wingspan curled wing UAV aerial delivery system according to claim 6, characterized in that: Each drone is connected to the delivery vehicle via a delivery rack.

Images