Novel underwater vehicle propulsion driving system and method

Abstract

According to the novel underwater vehicle propulsion driving system and method, an upper side face water spraying area, a lower side face water spraying area, two side face water spraying areas and a tail water spraying area are arranged on the surface of an underwater vehicle, and nozzles are arranged in each water spraying area at intervals; wherein the water spraying direction of the nozzles in the upper side face water spraying area and the lower side face water spraying area is perpendicular to the advancing direction, the water spraying direction of the nozzles in the two side face water spraying areas is inclined backwards, and the water spraying direction of the nozzles in the tail water spraying area is opposite to the advancing direction. The nozzle in each water spraying area is communicated with a water outlet of a temporary water storage tank through a water spraying pipe and a water flow adjusting valve, and a water inlet of the temporary water storage tank is communicated with the head water inlet through the centrifugal water pump. The centrifugal pump is used for sucking water from the head of the vehicle, high-pressure water is sprayed out of the periphery of the shell of the vehicle through the water pump, and the underwater vehicle rapidly advances, steers, floats upwards and dives through thrust generated by water spraying.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to underwater navigation technology, and in particular to a novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive system and method. Background Art

[0002] Underwater vehicle propulsion technology is one of the core technologies for underwater robots, submarines, unmanned underwater vehicles (UUVs / AUVs), and other equipment. Its performance is directly related to the speed, endurance, stealth, maneuverability, and operational capabilities of the vehicle. The following are the classifications and characteristics of existing underwater propulsion technologies: 1. Conventional propulsion technology; (1) Propeller propulsion: Propeller rotation is driven by an electric motor or hydraulics to generate thrust.

[0003] Advantages: mature technology, high efficiency (especially at high speeds), and low cost.

[0004] Disadvantages: obvious cavitation noise (cavitation effect is easily produced at high speed) and poor low-speed maneuverability.

[0005] Applications: Most submarines, AUVs (such as the REMUS series), ROVs (operational underwater robots).

[0006] (2) Pump-jet propulsion: The rotor (propeller) and stator (guide vanes) are wrapped in a duct to generate water flow at the tail end of the vehicle, forming directional thrust and reducing turbulence and cavitation.

[0007] Advantages: low noise, good high-speed performance, suitable for high-power scenarios.

[0008] Disadvantages: complex structure and heavy weight.

[0009] Applications: Modern military submarines (such as the Virginia-class nuclear submarines) and some high-end AUVs.

[0010] (3) Ducted propeller: An annular duct is installed on the periphery of the propeller to improve thrust concentration.

[0011] Advantages: good thrust directionality, suitable for precise control.

[0012] Disadvantages: Slightly less efficient than open propellers.

[0013] Applications: ROV, underwater drones (such as BlueROV2).

[0014] 2. New propulsion technology: (1) Magnetohydrodynamic propulsion (MHD): Seawater acts as a conductive medium, and the Lorentz force generated by the magnetic and electric fields propels the water flow.

[0015] Advantages: No mechanical moving parts, extremely quiet.

[0016] Disadvantages: High energy consumption and low efficiency (only verified in laboratories so far).

[0017] Applications: Experimental submarines (such as the Japanese "Yamato 1").

[0018] (2) Bionic propulsion: Imitating the swinging (such as caudal fins, pectoral fins) or undulating motion of fish or aquatic organisms.

[0019] Advantages: High maneuverability, low noise, and suitable for complex environments.

[0020] Disadvantages: Lower speed and complex structure.

[0021] Applications: Bionic robots (such as the "Robot Fish" of MIT and the AquaRay of Festo).

[0022] (3) Supercavitating propulsion: By generating a cavity that encloses the vehicle, the water resistance is greatly reduced.

[0023] Advantages: Extremely high speed (theoretically up to over 200 knots).

[0024] Disadvantages: Enormous energy consumption and difficult control.

[0025] Applications: High-speed torpedoes (such as the Russian "Shkval" torpedo).

[0026] (4) Rim-Driven Thruster: The motor stator is integrated inside the duct, and the rotor directly drives the outer edge of the propeller.

[0027] Advantages: Compact structure and low noise.

[0028] Disadvantages: Great challenges in heat dissipation and sealing.

[0029] Applications: Small AUVs, underwater observation equipment. Summary of the Invention

[0030] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is: To overcome the deficiencies of existing drive technologies and provide a new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system and method with reasonable design, high speed, and good safety.

[0031] The technical solution of the present invention is: A new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system, which includes a centrifugal water pump and a nozzle. Specifically: on the surface of the underwater vehicle, there are an upper side water spraying area, a lower side water spraying area, two side water spraying areas and a tail water spraying area respectively. In the upper side water spraying area and the lower side water spraying area, vertical nozzles are respectively arranged at intervals, and the water spraying directions of the vertical nozzles are perpendicular to the advancing direction. In the two side water spraying areas, inclined nozzles are respectively arranged at intervals, and the water spraying directions of the inclined nozzles are sprayed obliquely backward. In the tail water spraying area, horizontal nozzles are arranged at intervals, and the water spraying directions of the horizontal nozzles are opposite to the advancing direction. The nozzles in each water spraying area are respectively connected to the water outlet of the temporary water tank through a water spraying pipe and a water flow regulating valve, and the water inlet of the temporary water tank is connected to the head water inlet through the centrifugal water pump.

[0032] Furthermore: the head water inlet is arranged at the head of the underwater vehicle, and a filter is arranged at the head water inlet to prevent sundries from entering.

[0033] Furthermore: the water spraying directions of all the nozzles are fixed and unchanged, or the water spraying directions of all the nozzles can be adjusted to change the angle of the water spraying direction. At this time, the nozzles are provided with an angle adjusting mechanism.

[0034] Furthermore: there is at least one centrifugal water pump. When two centrifugal water pumps are used, their rotation directions are opposite, which can ensure the stability of water pressure and dynamic balance.

[0035] Furthermore: at least two water spraying sub-areas are respectively arranged in the upper side water spraying area, the lower side water spraying area and the two side water spraying areas. The nozzles in each water spraying sub-area are respectively connected to the water outlet of the temporary water tank through a water spraying pipe and a water flow regulating valve to achieve refined water spraying control.

[0036] A new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive method using the new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system includes the following steps: (1), Start the centrifugal water pump to inject water into the temporary water tank through the head water inlet. The temporary water tank is arranged in the inner cavity of the underwater vehicle; (2), When the underwater vehicle needs to dive, the nozzles in the upper side water spraying area spray water upward. Under the action of the reaction force, the underwater vehicle moves downward to achieve diving; (3), When diving to the set depth, the upper side water spraying area stops spraying water, and the nozzles in the two side water spraying areas and the tail water spraying area spray water to push the underwater vehicle forward; (4), When turning is needed, by adjusting the opening of the water flow regulating valve, the jet water flow in one side water spraying area is increased, and the jet water flow in the other side water spraying area is decreased to achieve turning; When the underwater vehicle finishes its stealth operation and needs to surface, the nozzles in the lower side water spraying area spray water downward. Under the action of the reaction force, the underwater vehicle moves upward to achieve surfacing and complete one stealth operation.

[0037] Furthermore, when the underwater vehicle experiences a depth drop due to a submarine cliff in the ocean during underwater navigation, the nozzles in the lower side water spraying area are activated to spray water downward rapidly, instantly generating an upward thrust force that enables the underwater vehicle to immediately surface and escape from the depth drop.

[0038] Furthermore, by adjusting the water flow regulating valve, the diving, forward movement, turning, and surfacing speeds of the underwater vehicle can be changed to achieve coordination and unity.

[0039] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows: 1. The present invention uses a common and efficient centrifugal pump to suck water into the underwater vehicle from the head, and the high-pressure water is sprayed out around the shell of the underwater vehicle (including the tail) through the water pump. The thrust generated by the water spraying enables the underwater vehicle to move forward, turn, rise, and dive rapidly.

[0040] 2. The water inlet of the present invention is located at the front end of the underwater vehicle. Due to the effect of pump suction, a negative pressure is generated in the forward direction of the underwater vehicle, significantly reducing the forward resistance. Therefore, the navigation speed of the underwater vehicle can be significantly improved while ensuring a certain power consumption.

[0041] 3. The present invention is densely provided with obliquely backward water spraying nozzles on the left and right sides of the underwater vehicle. The sprayed water flow not only has the power to push the underwater vehicle forward but also forms water flow areas on both sides, thereby reducing the adsorption force of the water on both sides of the underwater vehicle and further reducing the forward resistance, enabling the underwater vehicle to reach an unprecedented forward speed.

[0042] 4. At least one set of centrifugal pumps is used in the present invention. Installing two sets of centrifugal pumps with opposite rotation directions will be more reliable, which can not only ensure the stability of the water pressure but also offset the influence of the pump impeller rotation on the navigation direction control system.

[0043] 5. The present invention is reasonably designed, has a high navigation speed and good safety. By adjusting the water spraying water flow in each area through a proportional regulating valve, the underwater vehicle can achieve postures such as turning, moving forward, descending, and surfacing, which is easy to promote and implement, has high technical feasibility, and good economic benefits. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0044] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of a new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system; Figure 2 It is Figure 1 The top view of the new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system shown; <X Figure 3 It is Figure 1The schematic diagram of a new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system is shown as follows. Detailed implementation mode

[0045] Example 1: Refer to Figure 1 -- Figure 3 , in the figure, 1 - the left part of the front side water spraying area, 2 - the right part of the front side water spraying area, 3 - the left part of the upper side water spraying area, 4 - the right part of the upper side water spraying area, 5 - the left part of the lower side water spraying area, 6 - the right part of the lower side water spraying area, 7 - the left part of the rear side water spraying area, 8 - the right part of the rear side water spraying area, 9 - the tail water spraying area, 10 - the head water inlet, 11 - the nozzle, 12 - the filter, 13 - the centrifugal water pump, 14 - the temporary water storage tank, 15 - the water flow regulating valve, 16 - the water spraying pipe.

[0046] In this embodiment, Figure 1 is the structural diagram of the underwater vehicle placed horizontally. Based on this figure, the arrow in the figure is the navigation direction. Therefore, the left end is the head of the underwater vehicle, the right end is the tail of the underwater vehicle, and the two sides of the underwater vehicle are the front side and the rear side respectively.

[0047] A new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system includes a centrifugal water pump 13 and a nozzle 11. Among them: on the surface of the underwater vehicle, there are respectively an upper side water spraying area, a lower side water spraying area, two side water spraying areas and a tail water spraying area 9. In the upper side water spraying area and the lower side water spraying area, vertical nozzles are respectively arranged at intervals, and the water spraying direction of the vertical nozzles is perpendicular to the advancing direction. In the two side water spraying areas, inclined nozzles are respectively arranged at intervals, and the water spraying direction of the inclined nozzles is sprayed obliquely backward. In the tail water spraying area 9, horizontal nozzles are arranged at intervals, and the water spraying direction of the horizontal nozzles is opposite to the advancing direction. The nozzles 11 in each water spraying area are respectively communicated with the water outlet of the temporary water storage tank 14 through the water spraying pipe 16 and the water flow regulating valve 15, and the water inlet of the temporary water storage tank 14 is communicated with the head water inlet 10 through the centrifugal water pump 13.

[0048] Preferred solution: The head water inlet 10 is arranged at the head of the underwater vehicle, and a filter 12 is arranged at the head water inlet 10 to prevent sundries from entering and improve the operation safety. The water spraying directions of all the nozzles 11 are fixed and unchanged.

[0049] Preferred solution: The centrifugal water pump 13 is one or two. When two centrifugal water pumps 13 are used, their rotation directions are opposite, which can ensure the stability of water pressure and dynamic balance.

[0050] Preferred solution: At least two water spraying sub - areas are respectively arranged in the upper side water spraying area, the lower side water spraying area and the two side water spraying areas. The nozzles 11 in each water spraying sub - area are respectively communicated with the water outlet of the temporary water storage tank 14 through the water spraying pipe 16 and the water flow regulating valve 15 to achieve refined water spraying control.

[0051] In the figure, each water spray area is provided with two water spray partitions, namely: front side left water spray area 1, front side right water spray area 2, upper side left water spray area 3, upper side right water spray area 4, lower side left water spray area 5, lower side right water spray area 6, rear side left water spray area 7 and rear side right water spray area 8. Of course, according to the size of the underwater vehicle, three water spray partitions, four water spray partitions, five water spray partitions or six water spray partitions can be set respectively, and so on.

[0052] A novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive method comprises the following steps: (1) Start the centrifugal water pump 13 and inject water into the temporary water tank 14 through the bow water inlet 10. The temporary water tank 14 is set in the inner cavity of the underwater vehicle (not shown in the figure, the specific location depends on the specific structure and shape of the underwater vehicle); (2) When the underwater vehicle needs to dive, the nozzle 11 in the upper side water spraying area sprays water upwards, and under the action of the reaction force, the underwater vehicle moves downward to dive; (3) When the underwater vehicle dives to the set depth, the upper side water spraying area stops spraying water, and the nozzles 11 of the two side water spraying areas and the tail water spraying area continue to spray water, pushing the underwater vehicle forward; (4) When steering is required, the opening of the water flow regulating valve 15 is adjusted to increase the water flow of one side spraying area and reduce the water flow of the other side spraying area to achieve steering; (5) When the dive is complete and the vehicle needs to surface, the nozzles 11 in the lower side spray area spray water downward. Under the action of the reaction force, the underwater vehicle moves upward, surfaces, and completes a dive. During the dive, in order to ensure the vehicle's diving depth, the lower side spray area needs to continuously control the water flow rate according to the altitude signal to stabilize the vehicle's diving depth.

[0053] Optimal solution: When an underwater vehicle is sailing underwater and encounters a cliff in the ocean, causing the vehicle to fall deeper, the nozzles 11 in the lower side water spraying area are activated to spray water downward rapidly, instantly generating an upward thrust, causing the underwater vehicle to immediately float up and escape from the deep water.

[0054] Optimal solution: By regulating the water flow regulating valve 15, the speed of the underwater vehicle diving, moving forward, turning and floating can be changed in a coordinated and unified manner.

[0055] The centrifugal water pump 13 and the water flow regulating valve 15 are both connected to the controller and can be operated manually or by self-control, which is very flexible.

[0056] Embodiment 2: This embodiment is basically the same as Embodiment 1, and the same parts will not be repeated. The differences are as follows: The water spraying directions of all nozzles can be adjusted to change the angles of the water spraying directions. At this time, the nozzles are provided with an angle adjustment mechanism, and the angle adjustment mechanism is a prior art and can adopt various methods. For example, a universal joint structure can be adopted, which can rotate in multiple directions, and will not be elaborated one by one here.

[0057] The above are only the preferred embodiments of the present invention, and do not impose any form of limitation on the present invention. Any simple modification made according to the technical essence of the present invention still falls within the scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. A new type of underwater vehicle propulsion drive system, which includes a centrifugal water pump and a nozzle, is characterized in that: An upper side water spraying area, a lower side water spraying area, two side water spraying areas and a tail water spraying area are respectively provided on the surface of the underwater vehicle. The upper side water spraying area and the lower side water spraying area are respectively provided with upward or downward vertical nozzles at intervals, and the water spraying direction of the vertical nozzles is perpendicular to the forward direction. The two side water spraying areas are respectively provided with inclined nozzles at intervals, and the water spraying direction of the inclined nozzles is to spray obliquely backward. The tail water spraying area is provided with horizontal nozzles at intervals, and the water spraying direction of the horizontal nozzles is opposite to the forward direction. The nozzles in each water spraying area are respectively connected to the water outlet of the temporary water tank through a water spraying pipe and a water flow regulating valve, and the water inlet of the temporary water tank is connected to the bow water inlet through the centrifugal water pump.

2. A novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The bow water inlet is arranged at the bow of the underwater vehicle, and a filter is provided at the bow water inlet to prevent debris from entering.

3. A novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The water spraying directions of all the nozzles are fixed and unchanged, or the water spraying directions of all the nozzles can be adjusted to change the angle of the water spraying direction. In this case, the nozzles are provided with an angle adjustment mechanism.

4. A novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive system according to claim 1, characterized in that: There is at least one centrifugal water pump. When two centrifugal water pumps are used, their rotation directions are opposite, which can ensure the stability and dynamic balance of water pressure.

5. A novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive system according to claim 1, characterized in that: At least two water spraying zones are respectively arranged in the upper side water spraying zone, the lower side water spraying zone and the two side water spraying zones. The nozzles in each water spraying zone are respectively connected to the water outlet of the temporary water tank through a water spraying pipe and a water flow regulating valve to realize refined water spraying control.

6. A novel underwater vehicle propulsion and drive method using the novel underwater vehicle propulsion and drive system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, comprising the following steps: (1) Start the centrifugal water pump and inject water into the temporary water tank through the bow water inlet. The temporary water tank is set in the inner cavity of the underwater vehicle; (2) When the underwater vehicle needs to dive, the nozzles in the upper side water spraying area spray water upwards. Under the action of the reaction force, the underwater vehicle moves downwards to dive; (3) When the underwater vehicle dives to the set depth, the upper side water spraying area stops spraying water, and the nozzles of the two side water spraying areas and the tail water spraying area continue to spray water, pushing the underwater vehicle forward; (4) When steering is required, the opening of the water flow regulating valve is adjusted to increase the water flow of one side spray area and reduce the water flow of the other side spray area to achieve steering; (5) When the dive is completed and it is necessary to float up, the nozzles in the lower side spray area spray water downwards. Under the action of the reaction force, the underwater vehicle moves upwards, floats up, and completes a dive.

7. A novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive method according to claim 6, characterized in that : When an underwater vehicle is sailing underwater and encounters a cliff in the ocean, causing it to drop to a depth, the nozzles in the lower side water spraying area are activated to spray water downward rapidly, instantly generating an upward thrust, causing the underwater vehicle to immediately float up and escape from the depth.

8. A novel underwater vehicle propulsion drive method according to claim 6, characterized in that :By regulating the water flow regulating valve, the speed of the underwater vehicle diving, moving forward, turning and floating can be changed and coordinated.

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