Airborne electrical system and aircraft

Abstract

The invention discloses an airborne electrical system and an aircraft, and relates to the technical field of aircrafts. The airborne electrical system comprises at least two battery modules; the power distribution module is connected with each battery module; the power distribution module is configured to have a multi-independent-bus state and a common-bus state, under the condition that the power distribution module is in the multi-independent-bus state, the power distribution module is provided with a plurality of independent buses, the number of the independent buses is consistent with that of the battery modules, the independent buses and the battery modules are in one-to-one correspondence, one ends of the independent buses are connected with the corresponding battery modules, and the other ends of the independent buses are connected with the common-bus state. Under the condition that the power distribution module is in the common bus state, the power distribution module is provided with a common bus, at least part of all the battery modules are connected to the input side of the common bus in parallel, and at least part of the corresponding loads are connected to the output side of the common bus. According to the invention, the load can be continuously electrified to work so as to improve the safety of the eVTOL.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of aircraft, and particularly to an airborne electrical system and an aircraft. Background Art

[0002] eVTOL (electric Vertical Take-off and Landing, electric vertical take-off and landing aircraft) generally uses high-voltage electric energy as the energy source of the power components of the aircraft, and the power distribution module is used to distribute the high-voltage electric energy to each load of the eVTO.

[0003] Taking the power components as an example, the power distribution module can distribute the electric energy of the battery module to multiple motor windings of the eVTOL through multiple independent power supply channels. And different motor windings in the same power component are connected to different battery modules through the power distribution module. After one of the motor windings fails, the other motor winding system can still maintain power output.

[0004] However, in the related art, the power distribution method of the power distribution module causes that after a battery module has abnormal power supply and the motor winding connected to it fails, the remaining motor windings of the power component maintaining the operation of the power component can only lead to the performance degradation of the power component but cannot support the eVTOL to continue to operate safely. And in order to meet the power required for flight, the remaining motor windings will increase the discharge rate of the battery module connected to them, resulting in a risk of thermal runaway. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The main object of the present invention is to propose an airborne electrical system and an aircraft, aiming to solve the technical problem that the power distribution method of the power distribution module in the related art needs to improve safety in case of failure.

[0006] To achieve the above object, an airborne electrical system proposed by the present invention is applicable to an aircraft, and includes: At least two battery modules; and A power distribution module, the power distribution module is connected to each battery module and is adapted to be connected to the airborne load of the aircraft; wherein, the power distribution module is configured to have a multi-independent bus state and a common bus state. In the case where the power distribution module is in the multi-independent bus state, the power distribution module has a plurality of independent buses, the number of the independent buses is the same as the number of the battery modules and they correspond to each other one by one. One end of the independent bus is connected to the corresponding battery module, and the other end of the independent bus is adapted to be connected to the corresponding load in the airborne load. In the case where the power distribution module is in the common bus state, the power distribution module has a common bus, at least a part of all the battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least a part of the corresponding loads are connected to the output side of the common bus.

[0007] In one embodiment, the other end of the independent bus is adapted to be connected to the motor winding of the power assembly of the aircraft; wherein, the power assembly includes at least two motor windings, and different motor windings in the power assembly are connected to different independent buses.

[0008] In one embodiment, the power distribution module is configured to: In the case where the circuit parameters of at least one independent bus are detected to be less than the warning value and it is not a short - circuit fault, switch from the multi - independent - bus state to the common - bus state.

[0009] In one embodiment, the power distribution module further includes at least two switch units, and the number of switch units is the same as that of the independent buses and they correspond to each other one by one; wherein, all switch units are connected in parallel with each other, and each switch unit is respectively connected to the corresponding independent bus, so that in the case where all switch units are turned off, the power distribution module switches to the multi - independent - bus state, and in the case where all switch units are turned on, all independent buses are paralleled and re - constituted into a common bus to switch to the common - bus state.

[0010] In one embodiment, the airborne electrical system includes at least two power distribution modules. Each independent bus in each power distribution module is adapted to be connected to one of the negative pole and the positive pole of the corresponding load. Each power distribution module further includes a connection unit. The connection unit is connected to the connection units of other power distribution modules, and the connection unit is adapted to be connected to the other of the negative pole and the positive pole of all the loads corresponding to the power distribution module; The switch units of all power distribution modules of the airborne electrical system are connected in parallel with each other, so that in the case where all switch units are turned on, the independent buses of all power distribution modules are connected to each other and re - constituted into the whole - machine common bus.

[0011] In one embodiment, the power distribution module further includes at least two switch units, and the number of switch units is the same as that of the independent buses; wherein, all independent buses are connected in series through at least two switch units in sequence to form a loop, so that in the case where all switch units are turned off, the power distribution module switches to the multi - independent - bus state, and in the case where all switch units are turned on, all independent buses are connected in series and re - constituted into a common bus to switch to the common - bus state.

[0012] In one embodiment, the airborne electrical system includes at least two power distribution modules. Each independent bus in each power distribution module is adapted to be connected to one of the negative pole and the positive pole of the corresponding load. Each power distribution module further includes a connection unit. The connection unit is connected to the connection units of other power distribution modules, and the connection unit is adapted to be connected to the other of the negative pole and the positive pole of all the loads corresponding to the power distribution module; The airborne electrical system further includes a plurality of switch units, the number of switch units being the same as the number of independent buses. The independent buses of all the power distribution modules of the airborne electrical system are sequentially connected in series through the switch units to form a loop, so that when all the switch units are turned on, the independent buses of all the power distribution modules are connected to each other to reconstruct the whole-machine common bus, and when all the switch units are turned off, each power distribution module switches to the multi-independent bus state.

[0013] In one embodiment, the power distribution module further includes: At least two first safety protection modules, the number of the first safety protection modules being the same as the number of battery modules and corresponding to each other one by one. Both ends of the first safety protection module are respectively connected to a group of corresponding battery modules and the independent bus; and / or A plurality of second safety protection modules, the number of the second safety protection modules being the same as the number of loads and corresponding to each other one by one. The second safety protection modules are arranged between a corresponding airborne load and the independent bus.

[0014] In one embodiment, the first safety protection module and / or the second safety protection module is configured as a contactor and / or a fuse.

[0015] In addition, the present application also provides a vertical take-off and landing aircraft, including: An aircraft body, the aircraft body including a fuselage, wings and a tail wing, the wings and the tail wing being both connected to the fuselage; At least two power assemblies, the power assemblies being arranged on the wings or the tail wing, and each power assembly including at least two motor windings; and The airborne electrical system as described above, the airborne electrical system being arranged on the aircraft body, the independent buses in each power distribution module of the airborne electrical system being respectively connected to at least one motor winding, and different motor windings in each power assembly being connected to different independent buses.

[0016] One or more technical solutions proposed by the present invention have at least the following technical effects: The power distribution module is configured to have a common bus state including a common bus and a multi-independent bus state including a plurality of independent buses. When the power distribution module is in the common bus state, at least part of all the battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus and supply power to at least part of all the loads through the common bus. Thus, when the power supply of any battery module is abnormal and the load connected thereto fails, the power distribution module can be switched to the common bus state, and other battery modules are used to restore power supply to the load, so that the loads can all continue to be powered on to work, thereby improving the safety of the eVTOL.

[0017] Limited by factors such as the weight of the aircraft and the installation space of the battery and motor on the aircraft, it is difficult to achieve full backup between different motor winding systems in the power assembly. That is, a single motor winding is difficult to provide the rated power required to maintain the operation of the entire power assembly, or the remaining single motor winding can only increase the output power for a short time to meet the performance requirements of the power assembly as much as possible, but it is difficult to maintain for a long time. In the airborne electrical system proposed in the present invention, different motor windings in the power assembly are connected to different independent buses. In this way, when a single motor winding fails due to abnormal power supply of the corresponding battery module, the power distribution module can be switched to the common bus state to supply power to all motor windings together, so that the failed motor winding can resume operation, and then the power assembly can work normally to improve the safety of the aircraft. And after the power assembly works normally, there is no need for the remaining motor windings to increase the power to meet the flight requirements, so that the situation of thermal runaway of the battery module due to the increase of the discharge rate can be avoided, and the safety of the aircraft can also be improved.

[0018] In addition, compared with the related art where the battery module independently bears high discharge rate and high instantaneous response and there are safety hazards, in the airborne electrical system proposed in the present invention, when the power distribution module is in the common bus state, at least part of all battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus and supply power to at least part of all loads through the common bus. Since the capacity is larger after multiple battery modules are connected and the inclusiveness of the instantaneous response is greater, the overall safety of the aircraft can be guaranteed. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0019] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the following drawings are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can be obtained based on the structures shown in these drawings.

[0020] Figure 1 Schematic diagram of the power distribution module of the airborne electrical system provided by the present invention; where the independent buses are connected in parallel with each other through the switching unit; Figure 2 Schematic diagram of the power distribution module of the airborne electrical system provided by the present invention; where the independent buses are connected in series through the switching unit to form a loop; Figure 3 Schematic diagram of the power supply of the battery module and the motor winding in the airborne electrical system provided by the present invention; Figure 4 Schematic diagram of the layout of the airborne electrical system of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft provided by the present invention; Figure 5Schematic diagram of the airborne electrical system provided by the present invention; wherein, the airborne electrical system includes two power distribution modules, and four independent buses are connected in parallel to each other through a switching unit; Figure 6 Schematic diagram of the airborne electrical system provided by the present invention, wherein the airborne electrical system includes two power distribution modules, and four independent buses are connected in series through a switching unit to form a loop.

[0021] Explanation of the reference numerals in the drawings: 100, power distribution module; 100a, left power distribution module; 100b, right power distribution module; 101, fuselage; 110, input terminal; 120, output terminal; 130, independent bus; 130a, first independent bus; 130b, second independent bus; 130c, third independent bus; 130d, fourth independent bus; 140, switching unit; 150, first safety protection module; 160, second safety protection module; 170, connection unit; 200, battery module; 201, first battery module; 202, second battery module; 203, third battery module; 204, fourth battery module; 300, airborne load group; 301, first airborne load group; 302, second airborne load group; 303, third airborne load group; 304, fourth airborne load group; 310, fixed rotor unit; 320, tilt-rotor unit; 400, jumper cable; 401, second connecting wire; 402, first connecting wire; 611, first motor winding; 612, second motor winding; 621, third motor winding; 622, fourth motor winding.

[0022] The realization, functional characteristics and advantages of the object of the present invention will be further described in conjunction with the embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings. Detailed implementation manners

[0023] Next, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, rather than all of the embodiments. All other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art based on the embodiments of the present invention without creative efforts shall fall within the protection scope of the present invention.

[0024] It should be noted that if there are directional indications (such as up, down, left, right, front, back,...) involved in the embodiments of the present invention, the directional indications are only used to explain the relative position relationship and movement conditions between the components in a specific posture. If the specific posture changes, the directional indications will also change accordingly.

[0025] In addition, if the embodiments of the present invention involve descriptions such as "first", "second", etc., the descriptions of "first", "second", etc. are only for descriptive purposes and should not be construed as indicating or implying their relative importance or implicitly indicating the quantity of the indicated technical features. Thus, the features defined with "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one such feature. In addition, if "and / or" or "and / or" appears throughout the text, its meaning includes three parallel scenarios. Taking "A and / or B" as an example, it includes Scenario A, or Scenario B, or the scenario where both A and B are satisfied simultaneously. In addition, the technical solutions between various embodiments can be combined with each other, but it must be based on the fact that those of ordinary skill in the art can implement them. When the combination of technical solutions results in contradictions or cannot be implemented, it should be considered that such a combination of technical solutions does not exist and is not within the scope of protection required by the present invention.

[0026] The power assembly of the eVTOL includes an electric engine, a propeller, and other accessories, and is used to provide the pulling force or thrust required by the eVTOL. And eVTOLs of the pure electric type or hydrogen electric type, etc. mainly use high-voltage electric energy as the energy source of the power assembly of the whole aircraft. For this reason, the eVTOL is equipped with a power distribution module to distribute the high-voltage electric energy provided by the battery module to each load, such as the power assembly.

[0027] Taking the power assembly as an example, of course, in order to meet the safety requirements of the eVTOL, the power assembly generally has a redundant design. For example, the power assembly includes at least two motor windings. Taking a dual-winding motor as an example, on the one hand, due to the limitations of factors such as the installation volume, weight, device efficiency, and heat dissipation on the aircraft for the power assembly, the backup design is not a completely redundant backup relationship. When one motor winding system fails, the other motor winding system maintaining the operation of the power assembly will also cause the performance of the power assembly to degrade, and the time it can support operation under the required power conditions is short, and it cannot support the eVTOL to continue operating safely. That is, due to the performance degradation of the power assembly, there is always a certain risk for the eVTOL. Therefore, in order to ensure the flight safety of the eVTOL, it is necessary to make the failed motor winding resume operation so that the power assembly can operate normally. On the other hand, the battery module is also limited by factors such as its own characteristics, energy density, grouping rate, and the installation volume and weight on the aircraft. The power of a single battery module is certain. If the power of the other motor winding is increased to meet the flight requirements, it will cause the discharge rate of the battery module supplying power to the other motor winding to increase. High-rate discharge for a long time results in a risk of thermal runaway for the battery module. In addition, the battery module has a low tolerance for the instantaneous response of the airborne load, thus posing a safety hazard.

[0028] To this end, the present invention provides a solution. The power distribution module not only has a multi-independent bus state including multiple independent buses, but also has a common bus state including a common bus. When the power distribution module is in the common bus state, at least part of all the battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least part of all the loads are powered through the common bus. Thus, when the power supply of any battery module is abnormal and the load connected thereto fails, the power distribution module can be switched to the common bus state, and other battery modules are used to restore power supply to the load, so that all the loads can operate normally to improve the safety of the eVTOL.

[0029] The following further elaborates on the technical concept of the present invention in conjunction with some specific embodiments.

[0030] First, the technical terms involved in the embodiments of the present invention are explained: Bus bar: Also known as a laminated bus bar, it is a power module electrical connection component with a multi-layer laminated structure and can connect to the power distribution points of multiple circuits. Among them, the DC bus bar is used in DC circuits and is usually a metal bar or a group of metal bars connected in parallel.

[0031] Please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 , this embodiment proposes an airborne electrical system applicable to an aircraft, including: at least two battery modules 200 and a power distribution module 100.

[0032] Among them, the power distribution module 100 is connected to each battery module 200 and is adapted to be connected to the airborne load of the aircraft. The power distribution module 100 is configured to have a multi-independent bus state and a common bus state. When the power distribution module 100 is in the multi-independent bus state, the power distribution module 100 has multiple independent buses 130. The number of the independent buses 130 is the same as the number of the battery modules 200 and they correspond to each other one by one. One end of the independent bus 130 is connected to the corresponding load in the airborne load. When the power distribution module 100 is in the common bus state, the power distribution module 100 has a common bus. At least part of all the battery modules 200 are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least part of the corresponding loads are connected to the output side of the common bus.

[0033] Specifically, the airborne electrical system in this embodiment is applicable to eVTOLs using power types such as pure electricity and hydrogen electricity. Of course, it is also applicable to other aircraft with airborne power supplies. It can be understood that taking the eVTOL as an example, the battery module 200 includes but is not limited to power batteries and emergency power supplies, etc., and is used to provide electrical energy to the power components of the eVTOL, and can also provide electrical energy to airborne systems such as the avionics system, the airborne environmental control system, and the airborne lighting system. In addition, the battery module 200 includes but is not limited to airborne power supplies such as main power supplies and emergency power supplies.

[0034] The airborne load can be a high-voltage power load, which can be divided into multiple airborne load groups 300. Each airborne load group 300 is configured to include at least a part of at least one power component: for example, it can be configured as the whole power component, or it can also only include a part of a power component, such as one of the motor windings, etc. This embodiment does not limit this. Of course, the airborne load group 300 can also include other airborne loads, and this embodiment does not limit this.

[0035] The power distribution module 100 is a power transmission system from each battery module 200 to each airborne load group 300. Therefore, please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 , the power distribution module 100 has an input end 110 connected to each battery module 200, so as to receive the electric energy provided by the battery module 200 connected thereto. The power distribution module 100 also has an output end 120 connected to each load in the airborne load group 300. The output end 120 conveys the distributed electric energy to each load in the airborne load group 300 connected thereto. It is worth mentioning that each output end 120 can include multiple sub-interfaces, and each sub-interface is respectively connected to each load in an airborne load group 300.

[0036] In this embodiment, the power distribution module 100 is configured to have a multi-independent bus state and a common bus state. It can be understood that when the power distribution module 100 is in the multi-independent bus state, it includes multiple independent buses 130. That is, for each battery module 200, the power distribution module 100 establishes a normal power supply channel between a battery module 200 and an airborne load group 300 through an independent bus 130, so as to convey the electric energy provided by a battery module 200 to the corresponding airborne load group 300 through this independent bus 130. For example, please refer to Figure 5 , the first independent bus 130a establishes a power supply channel between the first battery module 201 and the first airborne load group 301, the second independent bus 130b establishes a power supply channel between the second battery module 202 and the second airborne load group 302, the third independent bus 130c establishes a power supply channel between the third battery module 203 and the third airborne load group 303, and the fourth independent bus 130d establishes a power supply channel between the fourth battery module 204 and the fourth airborne load group 304.

[0037] When the power distribution module 100 is in the common bus state, it has at least one common bus. At this time, the power distribution module 100 reconstructs at least part of all the independent buses 130 inside into a common bus, so that the input ends 110 corresponding to the reconstructed independent buses 130 are all connected to the input side of this common bus, and all the output ends 120 corresponding to the reconstructed independent buses are connected to the output side of this common bus, so that at least part of the battery modules 200 supply power to the corresponding multiple output ends 120 together.

[0038] Thus, when an abnormal power supply occurs in any one of the battery modules 200, the power distribution module 100 can, through state switching, distribute the electric energy provided by other normally operating battery modules 200 to the airborne load group 300 corresponding to the any one battery module 200, thereby ensuring the continuous supply of electric energy to the corresponding airborne load group 300 and guaranteeing the stable electric power on the airborne load group 300. For eVTOL, ensuring the continuous supply of electric energy to the airborne load of eVTOL also further improves the safety margin of eVTOL.

[0039] In addition, it is not difficult to see that the parallel structure of the remaining battery modules 200 can force the voltages of the remaining battery modules to tend to be consistent. Before actual parallel connection, the voltages of the remaining battery modules are always inconsistent. During the parallel connection process, the load does not stop working. After parallel connection, the output current of the battery module with a higher voltage is larger. Soon, the voltages among the remaining multiple battery modules 200 tend to be consistent. For the airborne electrical system, it can maintain voltage stability, with smaller voltage fluctuations and higher fault tolerance, thereby improving the stability of the whole machine system. That is, in this embodiment, since the capacity is larger after multiple battery modules 200 are connected in parallel and the tolerance for instantaneous response is greater, the overall safety of the aircraft can be guaranteed.

[0040] Certainly, in a specific embodiment, when the power distribution module 100 is in the common bus state, there is only one common bus, that is, all the independent buses 130 are reconstructed into one common bus. Thus, all the battery modules 200 are connected to the input side of the common bus, and all the airborne load groups 300 are connected to the output side of the common bus. At this time, all the normally operating battery modules 200 together provide electric energy for all the airborne load groups 300. The following also further elaborates with the example that all the independent buses 130 are reconstructed into one common bus.

[0041] It is easy to understand that in order to meet the safety requirements of eVTOL, the motor in the electric engine of the power component as described above is a dual-winding motor. Each motor winding respectively uses one motor controller to provide the required power. The motor controllers connected to the two motor windings of each motor are respectively powered by different battery modules 200. In this way, after a single motor winding fails or loses power, the remaining motor winding can still provide power. However, there are two problems in this regard: On the one hand, limited by factors such as the installation volume of the motor on the aircraft, device efficiency, and heat dissipation, if the motor backup design is not a completely redundant backup relationship, after a single motor winding fails or loses power, the other motor winding cannot provide the rated power required to maintain the operation of the entire power component. It can only provide the required power by degrading the performance of the entire power component. And the working time that the motor winding can support under such conditions is short, making it difficult to support the aircraft to continue flying safely. In order to meet the flight performance requirements of eVTOL and ensure flight safety, it is necessary to restore power supply to the motor winding that has lost power due to power failure, so that the power component can maintain normal operation. On the other hand, if the motor can meet the requirements of maintaining safe flight by increasing the output power without performance degradation in the single-motor-winding working state, however, due to factors such as energy density, grouping rate, installation space on the aircraft, and weight limit of the battery module, the power of a single battery module is certain. This will lead to an increase in the discharge rate of the battery module 200 connected to the single motor winding, and at the same time, the voltage of the battery module 200 will drop rapidly. In the case of high-rate discharge for a long time, the safety issue of the battery module 200 has become an urgent challenge to be solved. The eVTOL at the whole machine level does not want a single battery module 200 to enter an unsafe state when there are multiple normally operating battery modules 200. Therefore, in order to solve the above technical problems faced by the motor and the battery, the technical solution of the present invention is proposed. On the one hand, when a certain battery module 200 fails, the power distribution module 100 switches from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state to restore power supply to the powered-off motor winding. And at this time, all the battery modules 200 in the normal state together provide electrical energy for all power components. After multiple battery modules 200 are connected in parallel, the capacity is larger and the tolerance for instantaneous response is greater, so the overall safety of the aircraft can be guaranteed. On the other hand, when a single motor winding fails or loses power, the battery modules 200 connected in parallel supply power together to avoid a single battery module 200 entering an unsafe state.

[0042] Therefore, in one embodiment, the other end of the independent bus 130 is adapted to be connected to the motor winding of the power component of the aircraft; wherein, the power component includes at least two motor windings, and different motor windings in the power component are connected to different independent buses.

[0043] Specifically, a single power component is disposed on the wing or tail of the aircraft, and is used to provide the pulling force, thrust, and / or at least part of the lift required for eVTOL flight. It can be understood that the power component includes a propeller, an electric motor, and other accessories. Among them, the electric motor is used to drive the propeller to rotate, and it includes a motor, a motor controller, and other accessories. For the motor of the power component, it includes at least two motor windings, and different motor windings are connected to different battery modules 200. Since the power component is respectively connected to multiple different battery modules 200, when the battery module 200 connected to any motor winding has a power supply abnormality, other battery modules 200 can still supply electric energy to the remaining motor windings to ensure that the power component can maintain a minimum level of operation. Of course, when other battery modules 200 can still supply electric energy to the remaining motor windings, the flight control system can perform corresponding redistribution of the pulling force, thrust, and / or lift, such as adjusting the output power of the remaining motor windings in at least two motor windings.

[0044] In this embodiment, the other end of the independent bus 130 is adapted to be connected to the motor winding, and different motor windings in the power component are connected to different independent buses 130. Please refer to Figure 3 , the first motor winding 611 of a power component is connected to the fourth battery module 204, the second motor winding 612 is connected to the first battery module 201, the third motor winding 621 of another power component is connected to the fourth battery module 204, and the fourth motor winding 622 is connected to the first battery module 201. It can be seen that the two motor windings of each power component are respectively connected to different battery modules 200. Thus, in the normal working condition, the power distribution module 100 is in a multi-independent bus state, and two different battery modules 200 respectively supply electric energy to different motor windings in the same power component through an independent bus 130. When one of the battery modules 200 has a power supply abnormality, the power distribution module 100 can switch to the common bus state, so that the remaining battery modules 200 are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and all the motor windings are connected to the output side of the common bus, so as to still ensure that all the motor windings can be continuously powered on and work normally, and further ensure that all the power components can work normally, avoiding the situation of performance degradation.

[0045] In addition, the fixed rotor unit 310 and the tilt-rotor unit 320 are both power components provided on the eVTOL. As shown in Figure 3, the 4 outer power components of the eVTOL are all fixed rotor units, while the 4 inner power components are all tilt-rotor units. Among them, the tilt-rotor unit 320 is configured to switch between the cruise state and the vertical takeoff and landing state. It can be understood that when the tilt-rotor unit 320 is in the vertical takeoff and landing state, the eVTOL is in the vertical takeoff and landing stage during flight. When the tilt-rotor unit 320 is in the cruise state, the eVTOL is in the cruise stage during flight. When the tilt-rotor unit 320 is in the transitional state between the cruise state and the vertical takeoff and landing state, the eVTOL is in the tilt transition stage during flight. When the tilt-rotor unit 320 is in the cruise state, its propeller is approximately horizontal and forward. When the tilt-rotor unit 320 is in the vertical takeoff and landing state, its propeller is approximately vertically arranged. It is worth mentioning that for the tilt-rotor unit 320 in this embodiment, it can be a full tilt-rotor unit 320, that is, the entire tilt-rotor unit 320 is rotatable between the cruise position and the vertical takeoff and landing position, so as to achieve the switch between the cruise state and the vertical takeoff and landing state. Or, the tilt-rotor unit 320 can also be a partial tilt-rotor unit 320, that is, the tilt-rotor unit 320 is divided into the part where the rotor is located and the part where the nacelle is located. The part where the rotor is located is rotatable between the cruise position and the vertical takeoff and landing position, while the part where the nacelle is located is fixed to the aircraft body, so as to achieve the switch between the cruise state and the vertical takeoff and landing state. For the fixed rotor unit 310 in this embodiment, it is arranged in the vertical direction. During the vertical takeoff and landing stage and the tilt transition stage of the eVTOL, the fixed rotor unit 310 undertakes the main vertical lift generation task. Or, when the lift provided by the tilt-rotor unit 320 is insufficient, the fixed rotor unit 310 can supplement the corresponding lift. During the cruise stage of the eVTOL, the fixed rotor unit 310 can stop, or it can also reduce the rotational speed to enter the low power consumption mode but still provide a small amount of lift to reduce the wing load and indirectly improve the endurance.

[0046] It is easy to understand that the fixed rotor unit 310 shuts down or enters the low-power mode during the cruise phase, and during the vertical takeoff and landing phase and the tilt transition phase, normally the power between the tilt-rotor unit 320 and the fixed rotor unit 310 is not evenly distributed. For example, if the total power of the eVTOL is 1000 KW, all the tilt-rotor units 320 together bear 600 KW, and all the fixed rotor units 310 together bear 400 KW. Thus, the power consumption demands between the fixed rotor unit 310 and the tilt-rotor unit 320 are inconsistent. If any one of the battery modules 200 only supplies power to a part of the fixed rotor units 310 or only supplies power to a part of the tilt-rotor units 320 under normal conditions. Then there will be a discharge difference between different battery modules 200, resulting in a large difference in the remaining power of each battery module 200 after performing the flight mission, thereby causing inconsistent maintenance cycles of the battery modules 200 on the eVTOL, and further increasing the maintenance and operation costs of the eVTOL.

[0047] In this embodiment, each independent bus 130 is respectively connected to a motor winding of a part of the fixed rotor units 310 of the eVTOL and a motor winding of a part of the tilt-rotor units 320, and among the motor windings connected by all the independent buses 130, the number of motor windings belonging to the fixed rotor units 310 is the same, and among the motor windings connected by all the independent buses 130, the number of motor windings belonging to the tilt-rotor units 320 is the same. Please refer to Figure 3 , it can be seen that the first battery module 201 supplies power to 4 motor windings through the corresponding first independent bus 130a, the second battery module 202 supplies power to 4 motor windings through the corresponding second independent bus 130b, the third battery module 203 supplies power to 4 motor windings through the third independent bus 130c, and the fourth battery module 204 supplies power to 4 motor windings through the fourth independent bus 130d, and among them, 2 motor windings respectively belong to different fixed rotor units 310, and the other 2 motor windings respectively belong to different tilt-rotor units 320.

[0048] In this way, discharge balance can be roughly achieved among all the battery modules 200 connected by the power distribution module 100, ensuring that the power of different battery modules 200 can be synchronized roughly, or reduced to the same warning value within the allowable error range, so as to charge or replace the battery together within the same maintenance cycle. Of course, it should be noted that the battery capacities of all the battery modules 200 are the same. For example, in some specific embodiments, the battery modules 200 all adopt the same configuration to achieve the same battery capacity, so that the number of tests in the R & D stage and the number of compliance verifications can be significantly reduced. Of course, in the subsequent operation stage, the battery modules with the same configuration are also beneficial to maintenance.

[0049] It should be noted that the abnormal power supply of the battery module 200 can be a failure, such as the battery module 200 malfunctioning, being damaged by foreign objects, suffering from high-temperature failure, and supercooling failure, etc., where it cannot normally supply electrical energy outward or the power supply is unstable.

[0050] It is not difficult to see that in this embodiment, the power distribution module 100 can be switched to the common bus state to supply power to all the motor windings together, so that the powered-off motor windings can resume power supply, and thus all the motor windings of the power assembly can operate normally without performance degradation.

[0051] It should be noted that in the normal working state, the power distribution module 100 is in the multi-independent bus state. It can be understood that since the normal power supply channels where each independent bus is located are independent of each other, there is a redundancy design in the multi-independent bus state, which can prevent the entire airborne electrical system from collapsing due to a single-point failure.

[0052] The power distribution module 100 is configured to switch to the common bus state when it detects that the state switching condition is met.

[0053] The state switching condition includes but is not limited to at least one of the following conditions: (1) At least one battery module has abnormal power supply; That is, when the battery module 200 fails, the corresponding airborne load group 300 may face the risk of failure, that is, one or more power assemblies are also about to face the risk of performance degradation or loss of power, and the aircraft may fall into a dangerous state. Of course, in order to ensure the accuracy of state switching, in one embodiment, the power distribution module 100 is configured to switch to the common bus state when it detects that the circuit parameters of at least one independent bus are less than the warning value and it is not a short-circuit fault.

[0054] Since when the short-circuit fault has not been eliminated, connecting this independent bus 130 to other independent buses 130 to reconstruct the common bus will cause the common bus to still be in the short-circuit fault state, which will lead to catastrophic consequences for the eVTOL. Therefore, when the independent bus 130 is a short-circuit fault, the power distribution module 100 is not allowed to perform state switching.

[0055] When the short-circuit fault is excluded, the circuit parameters include but are not limited to current value, voltage value, or insulation resistance value, etc. Taking the voltage value as an example, specifically, a voltage sampling circuit and other structures can be configured in the power distribution module 100 to monitor the real-time voltage values of each independent bus 130. When the voltage value of at least one independent bus 130 is less than the warning value, it indicates that the battery module 200 of at least one independent bus 130 may have abnormal power supply, and then it can be switched to the common bus state.

[0056] Since the power distribution module 100 may be involved in the voltage reduction caused by the normal power-off after the aircraft such as eVTOL lands, in order to further ensure the accuracy of state switching, in one embodiment, the power distribution module 100 is configured to switch to the common bus state when the aircraft is in a flight state, provided that the detected voltage value of at least one independent bus is less than the warning value and there is no short-circuit fault.

[0057] (2) Power component failure; The power distribution module 100 is configured to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state when it is detected that all the motor windings of a power component fail to work properly, or the propeller part of the power component fails. Alternatively, the power distribution module 100 is configured to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state when it is detected that the propeller of a power component fails and cannot work.

[0058] It is easy to understand that when all the motor windings of a certain power component fail or the propeller fails, in order to redistribute the thrust, lift and / or lift of the eVTOL, the flight control system of the eVTOL needs to reduce the power of the symmetric power component of the power component to be modified, and even shut down the symmetric power component. Please refer to Figure 3 , after the outermost power component in the nose side area of the left wing of the eVTOL fails, the outermost power component in the tail side area of the right wing is centrosymmetric with it. In order to maintain flight stability, it will also be shut down, which will inevitably lead to an overcapacity of the battery module connected to the aforementioned power component. In addition, in order to maintain the required power of the whole eVTOL, the demand power of the whole eVTOL remains unchanged. Therefore, after the outermost power component in the nose side area of the left wing of the eVTOL fails, the flight control system will also control some power components to increase the output power. In this way, it is inevitable that the battery module 200 connected to the power component with increased power will discharge at a high rate, resulting in a faster decline in the battery capacity compared with other battery modules 200, which is not conducive to the maintenance of all battery modules 200 in the same maintenance cycle. In this embodiment, when a power component fails, the power distribution module 100 switches to the common bus state for power grid reorganization, so that all battery modules 200 are connected in parallel and powered together to achieve discharge balance between battery modules 200, thereby improving maintenance economy.

[0059] In addition, the high-rate discharge of the battery module 200 may also lead to thermal runaway of the battery module 200, that is, there is a safety hazard. In this embodiment, the power distribution module 100 switches to the common bus state for power grid reorganization, so that all battery modules 200 are connected in parallel and evenly powered, which can also improve the safety of the whole machine.

[0060] It is worth mentioning that in the related art, when a single motor winding of the power component fails, the flight control system needs to shut down the symmetric power component or control the performance degradation of the symmetric power component. In this embodiment, not only the power output of the symmetric power component will be adjusted, but also the power grid will be reorganized through the state switching of the power distribution module 100.

[0061] (3) Receive the state switching instruction That is, when the airborne electrical system receives the state switching instruction, it performs state switching, so as to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state. It should be noted that the state switching instruction can be issued by the pilot according to the actual flight situation or flight mission. Or, the state switching instruction can also be issued from an external device or a control center (such as a ground control center) to the aircraft, and this embodiment does not limit this.

[0062] And it is worth mentioning that the power distribution module 100 switches to the common bus state to solve the problems of motor windings or battery modules faced by eVTOL. After switching to the common bus state, it will not switch back to the multi-independent bus state during the current flight mission.

[0063] Regarding the specific structure of the power distribution module 100: In one embodiment, the power distribution module 100 can include both the multi-bus circuit structure required for the multi-independent bus state and the common bus circuit structure required for the common bus state. The two are independent of each other, and the power distribution module 100 is switched between the multi-independent bus state and the common bus state through an additional switching circuit. For example, when the switching circuit connects the multi-bus circuit structure to all the input terminals 110 and all the output terminals 120 respectively, the power distribution module 100 switches to the multi-independent bus state. Of course, when the switching circuit connects the common bus circuit structure to all the input terminals 110 and all the output terminals 120 respectively, the power distribution module 100 switches to the common bus state. It can be understood that in this embodiment, the method of configuring two sets of circuit structures will inevitably greatly increase the system weight of the power distribution module 100, and thus greatly increase the overall weight of the aircraft.

[0064] Therefore, in another embodiment, the power distribution module 100 performs state conversion between the multi-bus state and the common bus state through the switch unit 140, and the number of switch units 140 is the same as the number of independent buses 130.

[0065] Specifically, the power distribution module 100 further includes at least two switch units 140, and the number of switch units 140 is the same as the number of independent buses 130. At least two independent buses 130 are connected through at least two switch units 140 in a switchable manner, so that when all the switch units 140 are turned on, all the independent buses 130 are connected to each other to form a common bus.

[0066] As an option of this embodiment, the switching units 140 and the independent buses 130 are in one-to-one correspondence. All the switching units 140 are connected in parallel with each other, and each switching unit 140 is respectively connected to the corresponding independent bus 130. When all the switching units 140 are turned off, the power distribution module 100 switches to the multi-independent bus state. When all the switching units 140 are turned on, all the independent buses 130 are connected in parallel to form a common bus, so as to switch to the common bus state.

[0067] Specifically, please refer to Figure 1 , the power distribution module 100 further includes a plurality of switching units 140 connected in parallel with each other. The number of the switching units 140 is the same as that of the independent buses 130 and they are in one-to-one correspondence with each other. One end of each switching unit 140 is connected to the corresponding independent bus 130, and the other end of each switching unit 140 is connected to the same cable to achieve parallel connection with each other.

[0068] In this way, when all the switching units 140 are turned off, a single battery module 200 corresponds to a single independent bus 130, and the independent buses 130 corresponding to different battery modules 200 are electrically isolated from each other under normal working conditions, so that the power distribution module 100 is in the multi-independent bus state. In the multi-independent bus state, a failure of any battery module 200 or load circuit will not affect other independent buses in the power distribution module 100, so as to improve the safety margin. When all the switching units 140 are turned on, all the independent buses 130 will also be connected in parallel with each other to reconstruct a common bus. Of course, some of the switching units 140 can also be turned on, so that the corresponding partial independent buses 130 are connected in parallel to reconstruct a common bus, so that the power grid reconstruction of the power distribution module 100 is more flexible to meet the special requirements of various flight environments.

[0069] Alternatively, as another option of this embodiment, all the independent buses 130 of the power distribution module 100 are sequentially connected in series through at least two switching units 140 to form a loop. When all the switching units 140 are turned off, the power distribution module 100 switches to the multi-independent bus state. When all the switching units 140 are turned on, all the independent buses 130 are connected in series to reconstruct a common bus, so as to switch to the common bus state.

[0070] Specifically, the power distribution module 100 includes a plurality of independent buses 130. The plurality of independent buses 130 are numbered according to certain rules, such as the numbering order of the battery modules 200 they are connected to. Two adjacent independent buses 130 are connected by a switch unit 140, and the first independent bus 130 and the last independent bus 130 are also connected by a switch unit 140. In this way, all the independent buses 130 of the power distribution module 100 are sequentially connected in series through the switch units 140. When all the switch units 140 are switched to the on state, all the independent buses 130 form a loop, thereby reconstructing a common bus. Please refer to Figure 2 , when the power distribution module 100 includes two independent buses 130, the two independent buses 130 are connected by two switch units 140, thereby forming a loop.

[0071] It can be understood that the independent bus 130 can be configured as a bus bar or other structures. The bus bar can be a single metal bar or a group of metal bars connected in parallel. Therefore, all the bus bars being connected in parallel or in series to form a loop will cause all the bus bars to be reconstructed into a bus bar, that is, all the independent buses are reconstructed into a common bus, so that the power distribution module 100 is switched to the common bus state. Of course, the independent bus 130 can also be configured as other bus bar devices such as a bus.

[0072] The switch unit 140 can be configured as a bus bar connection contactor. Of course, the switch unit 140 can also be configured as a controllable switch or the like. This embodiment does not limit this.

[0073] Compared with the power distribution module 100 providing a multi-bus circuit structure and a common bus circuit structure that are independent of each other, in this embodiment, the multi-bus circuit structure is reconstructed into a common bus circuit structure through the switch units 140 connected in parallel with each other, thereby reducing the circuit devices required for the power distribution module 100 and minimizing the weight of the power distribution module 100 as much as possible.

[0074] In addition, for eVTOL, since at least two battery modules 200 are respectively located on both sides of the fuselage 101, in order to facilitate the layout of the power distribution system, the battery modules 200 on both sides of the fuselage 101 can respectively belong to two power distribution modules 100, that is, the battery modules 200 on one side of the fuselage 101 are powered through the corresponding power distribution module 100. When the power supply of the battery modules 200 connected to a single power distribution module 100 is abnormal, the power distribution module 100 can be switched to the common bus state to keep the airborne load corresponding to the power distribution module 100 powered on. However, in some extreme cases, it may cause all the battery modules 200 on one side of the fuselage 101 to fail. At this time, it is necessary to ensure that the airborne load is continuously powered on through the cooperation of the two power distribution modules 100.

[0075] At this time, the airborne electrical system includes at least two power distribution modules 100. Each independent bus 130 in each power distribution module 100 is adapted to be connected to one of the negative and positive poles of the corresponding load. Each power distribution module 100 further includes a connection unit. The connection unit is connected to the connection units of other power distribution modules 100, and the connection unit is adapted to be connected to the other of the negative and positive poles of all the loads corresponding to the power distribution module 100.

[0076] Please refer to Figure 4 , the eVTOL includes a left power distribution module 100a disposed on the left wing and a right power distribution module 100b disposed on the right wing. The left power distribution module 100a and the right power distribution module 100b are connected by a jumper cable 400.

[0077] For the case where the aforementioned switch units 140 are connected in parallel with each other, the switch units 140 of all the power distribution modules 100 of the airborne electrical system are connected in parallel with each other, so that when all the switch units 140 are turned on, the independent buses 130 of all the power distribution modules 100 are connected to each other and reconstructed into a whole-machine common bus.

[0078] The following takes the connection of the independent bus 130 to the positive pole of the load as an example for elaboration. Of course, the independent bus 130 can also be connected to the negative pole of the load, which will not be elaborated here.

[0079] Please refer to Figure 5 , the left power distribution module 100a includes a first independent bus 130a and a third independent bus 130c, while the right power distribution module 100b includes a second independent bus 130b and a fourth independent bus 130d. The positive pole interfaces of each input end 110 are connected to the corresponding independent bus 130. Each independent bus 130 is then connected to the positive pole interface of the corresponding output end 120. The first independent bus 130a, the third independent bus 130c, the second independent bus 130b, and the fourth independent bus 130d are all connected to the second connection line 401 of the jumper cable 400 through the switch unit BTC1, the switch unit BTC3, the switch unit BTC2, and the switch unit BTC4 respectively.

[0080] And the left power distribution module 100a further includes a connection unit 170. The connection unit 170 is connected to the negative pole interfaces of each input end 110 and is also connected to the negative pole interfaces of each output end 120. In addition, the connection unit 170 further includes an external interface, which is adapted to be connected to the external interface of the connection unit of the right power distribution module 100b through the first connection line 402 of the jumper cable 400.

[0081] Of course, in some specific embodiments, the connection unit 170 of the left power distribution module 100a and the connection unit of the right power distribution module 100b are different parts of the same connection unit, so as to save the number of components and weight.

[0082] Please refer to Figure 5 When the connection units 170 of multiple power distribution modules 100 are connected in series in sequence, all the switch units 140 of all the power distribution modules 100 are connected in parallel with each other. In this way, when multiple power distribution modules 100 are all in the common bus state, all the independent buses 130 of multiple power distribution modules 100 are reconfigured into a whole-machine common bus.

[0083] It can be understood that after being reconfigured into a whole-machine common bus, each battery module 200 of each power distribution module 100 is respectively connected to the input side of the whole-machine common bus, and all the loads connected by multiple power distribution modules 100 are connected to the output side of the whole-machine common bus.

[0084] For the case where the aforementioned switch units 140 are connected in series with each other to form a loop, the airborne electrical system further includes multiple switch units 140, and the number of switch units 140 is the same as that of the independent buses 130. The independent buses 130 of all the power distribution modules 100 of the airborne electrical system are connected in series in sequence through the switch units 140 to form a loop. In the case where all the switch units 140 are turned on, the independent buses 130 of all the power distribution modules 100 are connected to each other and reconfigured into a whole-machine common bus, and in the case where all the switch units 140 are turned off, each power distribution module 100 switches to the multi-independent bus state.

[0085] Please refer to Figure 6 As shown in the figure, the first independent bus 130a is connected to the third independent bus 130c through the switch unit BTC1, the second independent bus 130b is connected to the fourth independent bus 130d through the switch unit BTC2, the third independent bus 130c is connected to the second independent bus 130b through the switch unit BTC4, and the first independent bus 130a is connected to the fourth independent bus 130d through the switch unit BTC3, so that 4 independent buses 130 are connected end to end in sequence to form a loop.

[0086] Thus, when any one of the battery modules 200 in the fuselage 101 has abnormal power supply, the power grid can be reorganized by the synchronous state switching of the left power distribution module 100a and the right power distribution module 100b, so that the other 3 battery modules 200 in the fuselage 101 can provide electric energy for all the loads on the eVTOL.

[0087] It is not difficult to see that in this embodiment, the power grid reorganization is not limited to within a single power distribution module 100, but also includes the power grid reorganization between multiple power distribution modules 100. It can be understood that for an aircraft, the battery modules 200 can be multiple and distributed at different positions of the fuselage, such as symmetrically arranged on opposite sides of the fuselage and cooperating with different power distribution modules 100. When the power supply of the battery module 200 on either side is abnormal, such as a failure of the battery module 200 on one side of the fuselage due to an accident such as a collision on one side of the fuselage, multiple or all of the power distribution modules 100 of the fuselage can be reconfigured to obtain a common bus for the whole aircraft, and the power distribution modules 100 arranged at other positions of the fuselage are used for power supply, thereby further improving the safety redundancy.

[0088] In the foregoing embodiment, each independent bus 130 in the power distribution module 100 is independent of each other under normal operating conditions. In addition, in order to prevent faults from spreading between the battery module 200, the power distribution module 100, and the airborne load group 300, in one embodiment, the power distribution module 100 further includes: at least two first safety protection modules and / or at least two second safety protection modules. The number of the first safety protection modules is the same as the number of the battery modules 200 and they correspond to each other one by one. Two ends of the first safety protection module are respectively connected to the corresponding battery module 200 and the corresponding independent bus 130; the second safety protection module is arranged between the corresponding independent bus 130 and the load.

[0089] Specifically, a first safety protection module 150 is configured between the battery module 200 and the independent bus 130 that are connected to each other, so that when a failure occurs in the battery module 200 (power supply) or the power distribution module 100 (power distribution channel), the power supply and the power distribution module 100 can be electrically isolated. For example, please refer to FIGS. 5 and Figure 6 , the fuse BF1 arranged between the first battery module 201 and the first independent bus 130a, the fuse BF2 arranged between the second battery module 202 and the second independent bus 130b, the fuse BF3 arranged between the third battery module 203 and the third independent bus 130c, and the fuse BF4 arranged between the fourth battery module 204 and the fourth independent bus 130d.

[0090] Similarly, a second safety protection module 160 is configured between a group of output terminals 120 and the independent bus 130 that are connected to each other, so that when a failure occurs in the power distribution channel or the load, the power distribution channel and the load can be electrically isolated. For example, please refer to FIGS. 5 and Figure 6, the fuse F9 between the first independent bus 130a and some loads of the first airborne load group 301, the fuse F14 between the third independent bus 130c and some loads of the third airborne load group 303, the fuse F15 between the second independent bus 130b and some loads of the second airborne load group 302, and the fuse F20 between the fourth independent bus 130d and some loads of the fourth airborne load group 304.

[0091] It is not difficult to see that in this embodiment, a high-voltage power distribution redundancy design is adopted, and electrical isolation is achieved between power distribution channels, between battery modules, between loads, and between different fault points (power supply, power distribution channel, or).

[0092] It can be understood that the first safety protection module and / or the second safety protection module can be configured as a relay, a circuit breaker, or a fuse, etc. In one embodiment, the first safety protection module and / or the second safety protection module can be configured as a contactor and / or a fuse.

[0093] For a single fault point existing in the entire high-voltage power distribution network, the airborne electrical architecture adopted in this embodiment uses multi-redundant independent power distribution, that is, each battery module 200 corresponds to a single independent bus 130, and each independent bus 130 is electrically isolated from each other under normal operating conditions. And for any battery module 200 or load loop fault that cannot affect the power distribution function of other power distribution modules, this embodiment also configures fuses and contactors between each battery module 200 and the independent bus, and configures fuses between the independent bus 130 and each load, ensuring that there are corresponding electrical isolation means when a fault occurs in the power supply, power distribution channel, or high-voltage load.

[0094] In addition, the present invention also provides a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, including an aircraft body, at least two power components, and an airborne electrical system. The aircraft body includes a fuselage 101, wings, and a tail wing, and the wings and the tail wing are both connected to the fuselage 101; the power components are arranged on the wings or the tail wing, and each power component includes at least two motor windings; the airborne electrical system is arranged on the aircraft body, and each independent bus 130 in the power distribution module 100 of the airborne electrical system is respectively connected to at least one motor winding, and different motor windings in each power component are connected to different independent buses.

[0095] Among them, the aircraft body of the eVTOL refers to the main structure and support component body structure used to support and protect each component of the eVTOL and the entire system, including but not limited to the fuselage 101, wings, and tail wings. The power assembly is used to provide the pulling force, thrust, and / or at least part of the lift generated by the VTOL. It can be understood that for the eVTOL, the power assembly includes propellers, electric motors, and other accessories. The electric motor is used to drive the propeller to rotate. The electric motor includes a motor, a motor controller, and other accessories.

[0096] For the eVTOL, the on-board electrical system is used to supply electrical energy to at least part of each power assembly, such as supplying electrical energy to components such as the pitch motors of the propellers and supplying electrical energy to the motor controllers of the electric motors. Of course, for the VTOL with multiple powers including electrical energy and hydrogen energy, the on-board electrical system is used to supply power to a part of the power assemblies that use electrical energy. For any power assembly, it includes at least two motor windings, and different motor windings are connected to different battery modules 200. Since they are respectively connected to multiple different battery modules 200, when the battery module 200 connected to any motor winding has a power supply abnormality, other battery modules 200 can still supply electrical energy to the remaining motor windings to ensure that the power assembly can maintain a certain power output. However, after one motor winding fails, the other motor winding cannot achieve 100% power output of the power assembly through performance improvement, and can only keep the power assembly power output but requires performance degradation. Therefore, it is necessary to make the failed motor winding resume operation so that the power assembly can work normally.

[0097] In addition, if the remaining motor windings need to increase the output power, that is, the power consumption increases, after a single motor winding fails in the motor, it will cause the voltage of the battery module 200 connected to it to drop rapidly. And due to the current characteristics of the battery module 200 itself, limited by energy density, grouping rate, weight, installation space, etc., high-rate discharge for a long time is a challenge to the battery safety issue and may lead to thermal runaway of the battery module 200. Therefore, at the VTOL whole-machine level, it is not desired that a single battery module 200 enters an unsafe state, so it is also necessary to make the failed motor winding resume operation so that the power assembly can work normally.

[0098] In this embodiment, the other end of the independent bus 130 is adapted to be connected to the motor windings of the power assembly of the aircraft, and different motor windings in the power assembly are connected to different independent buses 130. Thus, under normal operating conditions, the power distribution module 100 operates in a multi-independent bus state, and two different battery modules 200 respectively supply electrical energy to different motor windings in the same power assembly through an independent bus 130. When the power supply of one of the battery modules 200 is abnormal, the power distribution module 100 can switch to the common bus state, so that the remaining battery modules 200 are connected to the input side of the common bus, and all the motor windings are connected to the output side of the common bus, thereby still ensuring that all the motor windings can continue to be powered on and operate normally, and further enabling all the power assemblies to operate normally, avoiding the occurrence of performance degradation. And after the power assembly operates normally, there is no need for the remaining motor windings to increase the power to meet the flight requirements, thus avoiding the occurrence of thermal runaway of the battery module due to the increase in the discharge rate, and improving the safety of the aircraft.

[0099] In addition, compared with the prior art where the battery module independently bears a high discharge rate and high instantaneous response and there are potential safety hazards, in the airborne electrical system proposed by the present invention, when the power distribution module is in the common bus state, at least a part of all the battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus and supply power to at least a part of all the loads through the common bus. Since the capacity is larger after multiple battery modules are connected and the tolerance for instantaneous response is greater, the overall safety of the aircraft can be guaranteed.

[0100] In addition, for the specific structure of the airborne electrical system, refer to the above embodiments. Since this vertical takeoff and landing aircraft adopts all the technical solutions of the above embodiments, it has at least all the beneficial effects brought by the technical solutions of the above embodiments, which will not be elaborated here one by one.

[0101] The above is only an exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and does not limit the patent scope of the present invention. Any equivalent structural transformation made under the technical concept of the present invention by using the content of the specification and drawings of the present invention, or directly / indirectly applied to other related technical fields, is included in the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An airborne electrical system, characterized in that, Applicable to an aircraft, including: At least two battery modules; and A power distribution module, which is connected to each of the battery modules and is adapted to be connected to the on-board loads of the aircraft; wherein, the power distribution module is configured to have a multi-independent bus state and a common bus state. In the case where the power distribution module is in the multi-independent bus state, the power distribution module has a plurality of independent buses, the number of the independent buses is the same as the number of the battery modules and they correspond to each other one by one. One end of each independent bus is connected to the corresponding battery module, and the other end of the independent bus is adapted to be connected to the corresponding load in the on-board loads. In the case where the power distribution module is in the common bus state, the power distribution module has a common bus, at least part of all the battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least part of the corresponding loads are connected to the output side of the common bus.

2. The airborne electrical system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The other end of the independent bus is adapted to be connected to the motor winding of the power assembly of the aircraft; wherein, the power assembly includes at least two motor windings, and different motor windings in the power assembly are connected to different independent buses.

3. The airborne electrical system according to claim 2, characterized in that, The power distribution module is configured to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state when it detects that the circuit parameter of at least one of the independent buses is less than the warning value and it is not a short circuit fault.

4. The airborne electrical system according to claim 1, wherein The power distribution module further includes at least two switch units, and the number of the switch units is the same as the number of the independent buses and they correspond to each other one by one; wherein, all the switch units are connected in parallel with each other, and each switch unit is respectively connected to the corresponding independent bus. In the case where all the switch units are turned off, the power distribution module switches to the multi-independent bus state, and in the case where all the switch units are turned on, all the independent buses are connected in parallel to form a common bus to switch to the common bus state.

5. The airborne electrical system according to claim 4, characterized in that, The on-board electrical system includes at least two power distribution modules. Each independent bus in each power distribution module is adapted to be connected to one of the negative electrode and the positive electrode of the corresponding load. Each power distribution module further includes a connection unit, and the connection unit is connected to the connection units of other power distribution modules, and the connection unit is adapted to be connected to the other of the negative electrode and the positive electrode of all the loads corresponding to the power distribution module; All the switch units of all the power distribution modules of the on-board electrical system are connected in parallel with each other. In the case where all the switch units are turned on, all the independent buses of all the power distribution modules are connected to each other to form an overall common bus.

6. The airborne electrical system according to claim 1, characterized in that, The power distribution module further includes at least two switch units, and the number of the switch units is the same as the number of the independent buses; wherein, all the independent buses are sequentially connected in series through at least two of the switch units to form a loop. In the case where all the switch units are turned off, the power distribution module switches to the multi-independent bus state, and in the case where all the switch units are turned on, all the independent buses are connected in series to form a common bus to switch to the common bus state.

7. The airborne electrical system according to claim 1, wherein The airborne electrical system includes at least two power distribution modules. Each independent bus in each power distribution module is adapted to be connected to one of the negative and positive poles of the corresponding load. Each power distribution module further includes a connection unit. The connection unit is connected to the connection units of other power distribution modules, and the connection unit is adapted to be connected to the other of the negative and positive poles of all the loads corresponding to the power distribution module; The airborne electrical system further includes a plurality of switch units. The number of the switch units is the same as the number of the independent buses. The independent buses of all the power distribution modules of the airborne electrical system are sequentially connected in series through the switch units to form a loop. In the case where all the switch units are turned on, the independent buses of all the power distribution modules are connected to each other to reconstruct the whole machine common bus. In the case where all the switch units are turned off, each power distribution module switches to the multi-independent bus state.

8. The airborne electrical system according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that, The power distribution module further includes: At least two first safety protection modules. The number of the first safety protection modules is the same as the number of the battery modules and they are in one-to-one correspondence with each other. Both ends of the first safety protection module are respectively connected to a group of corresponding battery modules and the independent bus; and / or A plurality of second safety protection modules. The number of the second safety protection modules is the same as the number of the loads and they are in one-to-one correspondence with each other. The second safety protection module is disposed between a corresponding airborne load and the independent bus.

9. The airborne electrical system according to claim 8, wherein The first safety protection module and / or the second safety protection module is configured as a contactor and / or a fuse.

10. A vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, characterized in that, Including: An aircraft body, which includes a fuselage, wings and a tail. The wings and the tail are both connected to the fuselage; At least two power assemblies, which are disposed on the wings or the tail, and each power assembly includes at least two motor windings; and The airborne electrical system according to any one of claims 1 to 9, the airborne electrical system is disposed on the aircraft body. Each independent bus in the power distribution module of the airborne electrical system is respectively connected to at least one of the motor windings, and different motor windings in each power assembly are connected to different independent buses.

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