Relay type infinite voyage low-altitude transportation system and method

Abstract

The invention discloses a relay type infinite voyage low-altitude transportation system and method, and belongs to the technical field of overall design of low-altitude transportation systems. According to the invention, the problems of limited voyage and limited endurance of the existing low-altitude aircraft are solved by an air relay type method. The transportation mother machine is connected with the power son machine through the son-mother machine connecting mechanism and exchanges materials and energy, after a transportation task is launched from the beginning of the transportation mother machine and the power son machine, the transportation mother machine interacts with the standby power son machine through the son-mother machine connecting mechanism after the transportation task is launched mainly through the ground son machine supply stations on the way and the standby power son machine. And the replaced power sub-machine returns to the unoccupied ground sub-machine supply station for supply, and after multiple rounds of replacement, the power sub-machine reaches the final destination for unloading and supply. The effective voyage is related to replaceable power sub-machines and ground sub-machine supply stations which are arranged along the way, and low-altitude transportation with infinite voyage and infinite endurance can be achieved theoretically.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention belongs to the technical field of overall design of low-altitude transportation systems, and in particular relates to a relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system and method. Background Art

[0002] The world is vigorously developing the low-altitude economy, and improving the range and economy of aircraft is one of the key research directions of the world's major scientific and technological powers. Although at present, a lot of research work has been carried out in various fields of increasing the range of various aerospace vehicles at home and abroad, such as aerial refueling, staged rockets, small aerospace planes on large transport mother aircraft, optimizing the aerodynamic structure of aircraft, optimizing energy modes and improving engine performance. However, there are almost no aircraft or solutions that can truly achieve sufficient economy and benefit the vast majority of ordinary people. In the future, the development of such aircraft systems or methods will mainly focus on the low-altitude economy field, and low-cost and long-range transportation solutions are the optimization solutions that the future civil and even military transportation markets are constantly pursuing, but there are still many problems in the research and development of related aircraft, systems and methods that need to be solved and considered.

[0003] 1. The existing aerial refueling scheme is mostly used in the military field, relying on aerial refueling aircraft to increase the range of fighter jets so that fighter jets can achieve a larger combat radius. Its essence is to meet the strategic needs of a country rather than directly benefit the people.

[0004] 2. The existing staged rocket technology solution is more used in the fields of strategic missiles and aerospace, and is aimed at military strategy and space exploration. It optimizes its range or payload through multi-stage booster rockets, but as the number of stages increases, its optimal mass ratio gradually decreases, and its application scenarios are still far away from the general public.

[0005] 3. In the field of aerospace, there is technology for large transport mother aircraft to carry small sub-aircraft. The small sub-aircraft include space manned transport aircraft solutions, which are used to send people into orbital space; there are also solutions for drones as small sub-aircraft solutions, which rely on large mother aircraft platforms to carry out various reconnaissance and exploration missions.

[0006] 4. In the aerospace field at all altitudes, research is constantly being conducted on optimizing the aerodynamic structure of aircraft, optimizing energy modes and improving engine performance. Recently, sixth-generation fighter jets and hypersonic weapons have been realized. Fixed-wing, multi-rotor or composite-wing manned and cargo aircraft have also been realized in the low-altitude economic field. However, due to application scenario considerations, manned and cargo aircraft with super range and endurance have not been developed.

[0007] 5. Driven by new technologies such as wind tunnels, computers and big data, the shapes and modes of various aircraft are constantly being optimized, and have basically reached and are close to the optimal shape and optimal efficiency limits.

[0008] 6. Taking into account the current background of low-altitude economic development and civil and even military application scenarios, as well as the main problems such as technical bottlenecks and economic efficiency in existing aerospace vehicle technologies, and considering the future development and improvement of emerging disciplines and technologies, this application proposes a relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation and method to solve the above problems. Summary of the invention

[0009] The purpose of the present invention is to solve the main problems of low transportation efficiency, upper limit of range and limited endurance of existing low-altitude aircraft. A brief summary of the present invention is given below to provide a basic understanding of certain aspects of the present invention. It should be understood that this summary is not an exhaustive summary of the present invention. It is not intended to identify the key or important parts of the present invention, nor is it intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0010] The technical solution of the present invention: Option 1: A relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transport system, which mainly includes necessary components such as ground mother aircraft airport, surface aircraft supply station, transport mother aircraft, power sub-aircraft and mother-sub aircraft docking mechanism.

[0011] Furthermore, the ground mother aircraft airport provides take-off and landing conditions and supply conditions for the transport mother aircraft, and the conditions may be a helipad, an aircraft runway, and an ejection and arresting system, and the supply conditions may be maintenance, loading and unloading of materials, and energy supply, etc.

[0012] Furthermore, the transport mother aircraft, as the mother body of the aircraft, serves as the main carrier of low-altitude transportation. It includes a cargo hold for carrying cargo that needs to be transported at low altitude, and is connected to the power sub-machine through a mother-sub-machine docking mechanism.

[0013] Furthermore, after the nth batch (n≥1) of power sub-machines take off from the ground sub-machine supply station below the route, they replace the (n-1)th batch of power sub-machines whose energy is about to be exhausted in the air, and provide power for the next leg of the flight for the transport mother aircraft that is performing the mission.

[0014] Furthermore, the (n-1)th batch of power sub-machines that are replaced by the nth batch (n≥1) of power sub-machines rely on the remaining energy to return to the ground sub-machine supply station where the nth batch of power sub-machines left for material and energy replenishment.

[0015] Furthermore, after returning to the ground sub-machine supply station to replenish materials and energy, the (n-1)th batch of power sub-machines will stand by until a mother machine transporting the power sub-machines that need to be replaced appears on the upper route.

[0016] Furthermore, the transport mother aircraft, after being replaced with the last batch of power sub-machines, will land at the terminal ground mother aircraft airport of the corresponding transport mission for replenishment.

[0017] Furthermore, the transport mother aircraft, after being replaced with the last batch of power sub-machines, will land at the terminal ground mother aircraft airport of the corresponding transport mission for replenishment.

[0018] Through the method described above, the power sub-machine provides power on the corresponding route to the relevant transport mother aircraft in a relay manner, ultimately realizing a flight system with theoretically unlimited range, which can match the required total batch of power sub-machines according to actual mission needs.

[0019] Solution 2: A relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation method: This method is implemented by the relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system described in claim 1, and is characterized in that it includes the following steps: Step 1: The transport mother aircraft connects to the first batch of power sub-aircraft through the mother-sub-aircraft docking mechanism and takes off at the mother aircraft airport on the ground; Step 2: When the first batch of power sub-machines reach a certain working consumption and are about to pass over the next ground sub-machine supply station, the second batch of power sub-machines take off from the ground sub-machine supply station; Step 3: When the second batch of power sub-machines approach the transport mother machine, the corresponding mother-sub-machine docking mechanism starts to work, so that the corresponding first batch of power sub-machines are separated; Step 4: The second batch of power submachines are connected to the transport mother machine through the mother-submachine docking mechanism and start the next leg of the voyage; Step 5: The first batch of powered sub-machines will fly back to the ground sub-machine supply station of the unpowered sub-machines for resupply; Step 6: Repeat steps 2 to 5, so that the (n-1)th batch of power sub-machines are all replaced with the nth batch of power sub-machines to ensure the subsequent voyage of the transport mother aircraft; Step 7: After the aerial relay of the last batch of power sub-machines is completed, the transport mother aircraft flies to the ground sub-machine supply station at the destination, completes landing and replenishment, and prepares for the next mission.

[0020] 1. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system and method of the present invention can select a suitable aircraft as a transportation mother aircraft according to the actual conditions of the transportation mission, such as distance, time, cargo and economic benefit considerations, so as to ensure maximum economic benefits and match greater market demand.

[0021] 2. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transport system and method of the present invention can provide take-off and landing conditions for the entire transport mother aircraft according to the aircraft type of the transport mother aircraft, and use vertical take-off and landing, runway take-off and landing, catapult take-off and arrested landing according to local conditions, and achieve a relatively good flight state.

[0022] 3. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transport system and method of the present invention can match the corresponding power sub-machine and its corresponding ground sub-machine supply station according to the aircraft type of the transport mother aircraft to meet the actual transport task needs of different transport modes, different loading and unloading methods, different transport conditions, etc.

[0023] 4. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transport system and method of the present invention can obtain information on corresponding routes based on the transport volume and other needs, and make certain flexible arrangements for ground sub-machine supply stations and adjust their distribution density to meet the needs of transport routes with different busyness levels, while ensuring that there are no power sub-machines and ground sub-machine supply stations that have been idle for too long. In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, the following briefly introduces the drawings required for use in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art description. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings without creative work. Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system and method is provided for the embodiment of the present application: Figure 2 A single relay flow diagram is provided for the embodiment of the present application. Reference numerals: 1-ground mother aircraft airport, 2-transport mother aircraft, 3-powered daughter aircraft, 4-ground daughter aircraft supply station, 5-mother-child aircraft docking mechanism. All the above-mentioned marked graphics are only used as legend references for easy understanding and are not used as design finalization.

Claims

1. A relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transport system, characterized by: The ground mother aircraft airport (1) provides take-off, landing, loading and unloading conditions for the transport mother aircraft (2); The ground submachine supply station (4) provides a take-off and landing place, material supply and energy supply for the power submachine (3); The transport mother aircraft (2) is the aircraft mother body and serves as the main carrier for low-altitude transportation; The mother-child aircraft docking mechanism (5) is a functional module, mainly used to dock and fix the aircraft mother aircraft (3) and the power child aircraft (3) and to achieve material and energy exchange between the aircraft.

2. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 1 is characterized by: The ground mother aircraft airport (1) provides take-off and landing conditions and supply conditions for the transport mother aircraft (2), and the conditions may include a parking apron, an aircraft runway, and a catapult and arresting system. The supply conditions may include maintenance, loading and unloading of materials, and supply of energy, etc.

3. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 2 is characterized by: The transport mother aircraft (2) serves as the aircraft mother body and acts as the main carrier for low-altitude transportation. It includes a cargo hold for carrying cargo that needs to be transported at low altitudes and is connected to the power sub-machine (3) via a mother-sub-machine docking mechanism (5).

4. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 3 is characterized by: After the nth batch (n≥1) of powered sub-machines (3) take off from the ground sub-machine supply station (4) below the route, they replace the (n-1)th batch of powered sub-machines (3) whose energy is about to be exhausted in the air, and provide power for the transport mother aircraft (2) that is currently performing a mission for the next leg of the voyage.

5. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 4 is characterized by: When the (n-1)th batch of power sub-machines (3) are replaced by the nth batch (n≥1) of power sub-machines (3), they rely on the remaining energy to return to the ground sub-machine supply station (4) where the nth batch of power sub-machines (3) left, for material and energy replenishment.

6. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 5 is characterized by: After returning to the ground sub-machine supply station (4) to replenish materials and energy, the aforementioned (n-1)th batch of power sub-machines (3) remain on standby until a transport mother machine (2) for a power sub-machine (3) that needs to be replaced appears on the upper route.

7. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 3 is characterized by: After being replaced with the last batch of power sub-machines (3), the transport mother aircraft (2) will land at the terminal ground mother aircraft airport (1) of the corresponding transport mission for replenishment.

8. The relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 1 is characterized by: Through the aforementioned characteristic description, the power sub-machine (3) provides power on the corresponding route to the relevant transport mother aircraft (2) in a relay manner, and finally realizes a flight system with theoretically unlimited range, which can match the total batch of power sub-machines (3) required according to actual mission needs.

9. A relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation method, which is implemented by the relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: Step 1: The transport mother aircraft (2) is connected to the first batch of power sub-aircraft (3) through the mother-sub-aircraft docking mechanism (5) and takes off at the ground mother aircraft airport (1); Step 2: When the first batch of power sub-machines (3) reach a certain working consumption and are about to pass over the next ground sub-machine supply station (4), the second batch of power sub-machines (3) take off from the ground sub-machine supply station (4) one after another; Step 3: When the second batch of power sub-machines (3) approach the transport mother machine (2), the corresponding mother-sub-machine docking mechanism (5) starts to work, so that the corresponding first batch of power sub-machines (3) are separated; Step 4: The second batch of power submachines (3) are connected to the transport mother machine (2) through the mother-submachine docking mechanism (5) to start the next leg of the voyage; Step 5: The first batch of powered sub-machines (3) fly back to the ground sub-machine supply station (4) of the unpowered sub-machines (3) for resupply; Step 6: Repeat steps 2 to 5, so that the (n-1)th batch of power sub-machines (3) are all replaced with the nth batch of power sub-machines (3), ensuring the subsequent voyage of the transport mother aircraft (2); Step 7: After the aerial relay of the last batch of power sub-machines (3) is completed, the transport mother machine (2) flies to the ground sub-machine supply station (4) at the end point, completes landing and replenishment, and prepares for the next mission.

10. A relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation method, which is implemented by the relay-type unlimited-range low-altitude transportation system according to claim 9, characterized in that: The power sub-machine (3) can choose to replace the power sub-machine (3) connected to the transport mother machine (2) or exchange materials or energy with the power sub-machine (3) according to the specific design of its energy situation and supply method, thereby realizing aerial relay type energy replenishment.

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