Vertical take-off and landing aircraft control method and aircraft

Abstract

The invention discloses a vertical take-off and landing aircraft control method and an aircraft, and relates to the field of aircrafts. The vertical take-off and landing aircraft control method comprises the steps that whether the state of a power device of a vertical take-off and landing aircraft is abnormal or not is determined; and under the condition that the state of the power device is determined to be abnormal, controlling a power distribution module to be switched from a multi-independent bus state to a common bus state. When the power device is abnormal, the power distribution module can be controlled to be switched to the public bus state, so that the safety of the eVTOL is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of aircraft, and particularly to a control method for a vertical take-off and landing aircraft and an aircraft. Background Art

[0002] The power device of an eVTOL (electric Vertical Take-off and Landing aircraft) refers to a device that provides power, including a propulsion assembly, a battery module, a power distribution system, etc. And generally, an eVTOL uses high-voltage electric energy as the energy source for the propulsion assembly of the aircraft, and power distribution modules such as power distribution boxes in the power distribution system are used to distribute the high-voltage electric energy to each load of the eVTOL.

[0003] However, taking the propulsion assembly as an example, the power distribution module can distribute the electric energy of the battery module to the motor windings of the propulsion assembly through multiple independent power supply channels. And different motor windings in the same propulsion assembly 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. This way results in that after one motor winding fails, the remaining motor windings of the propulsion assembly maintaining the operation of the propulsion assembly can only lead to the performance degradation of the propulsion assembly but cannot support the eVTOL to continue operating 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. That is, in the related art, the power supply method of the power distribution module has potential safety hazards in abnormal situations. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The main purpose of this application is to provide a control method for a vertical take-off and landing aircraft 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 abnormal situations.

[0005] To achieve the above object, this application proposes a control method for a vertical take-off and landing aircraft, including: Determine whether the state of the power device of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft is abnormal; the power device includes at least two propulsion assemblies, at least two battery modules, and a power distribution module, the power distribution module is connected to each battery module and is connected to the propulsion assembly; When it is determined that the power unit is in an abnormal state, the control module controls the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state; wherein, the power distribution module is configured with a multi-independent bus state and a common bus state. When the power distribution module is in the multi-independent bus state, the power distribution module has a plurality of independent buses, the number of independent buses is the same as the number of battery modules and they correspond to each other one by one. Each battery module is connected to at least part of all propulsion components through the corresponding independent bus to supply power. When the power distribution module is in the common bus state, the power distribution module has a common bus, at least part of all battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least part of the propulsion components are connected to the output side of the common bus.

[0006] In addition, to achieve the above object, the present application also provides a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, including: A power unit, the power unit includes at least two propulsion components, at least two battery modules and a power distribution module. The power distribution module is connected to each battery module and is also connected to the propulsion components, and the power distribution module is configured to have a multi-independent bus state and a common bus state. When the power distribution module is in the multi-independent bus state, the power distribution module has a plurality of independent buses, the number of independent buses is the same as the number of battery modules and they correspond to each other one by one. Each battery module is connected to at least part of all propulsion components through the corresponding independent bus to supply power. When the power distribution module is in the common bus state, the power distribution module has a common bus, at least part of all battery modules are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least part of the propulsion components are connected to the output side of the common bus; and A control module, the control module includes a memory, a processor and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor. The computer program is configured to implement the steps of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method as described above.

[0007] One or more technical solutions proposed by the present application have at least the following technical effects: 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 propulsion components through the common bus. Thus, when the state in the power unit is abnormal (battery module side fault and / or propulsion component side fault), it is possible to control the power distribution module to switch to the common bus state, so that when there is a fault on the battery module side, other battery modules can be used to restore power supply to the propulsion components, ensuring that the propulsion components can continue to be powered on to improve the safety of the eVTOL. Or when there is a fault on the propulsion component side, all battery modules are used for parallel power supply, thus avoiding the risk of thermal runaway due to high-rate discharge of some battery modules and also improving safety. Description of the Drawings

[0008] The accompanying drawings here are incorporated into the specification and form a part of this specification, showing embodiments consistent with this application, and are used together with the specification to explain the principles of this application.

[0009] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the accompanying drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, for those of ordinary skill in the art, without creative efforts, other drawings can also be obtained based on these drawings.

[0010] Figure 1 It is a schematic flowchart provided for Embodiment 1 of the control method of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft of this application; Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the power distribution module of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft provided by this application; where the independent buses are connected in parallel with each other through the switch unit; Figure 3 It is a schematic diagram of the power distribution module of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft provided by this application; where the independent buses are connected in series through the switch unit to form a loop; Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the power supply of the battery module and the motor winding in the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft provided by this application; Figure 5 It is a schematic layout diagram of the power distribution module of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft provided by this application; Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the power distribution module of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft provided by this application; where the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft includes two power distribution modules, and 4 independent buses are connected in parallel with each other through the switch unit; Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the power distribution module of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft provided by this application, where the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft includes two power distribution modules, and 4 independent buses are connected end to end through the switch unit; Figure 8 It is a schematic flowchart provided for Example 1 of this application; Figure 9 It is a schematic flowchart provided for Example 2 of this application; Figure 10 It is a schematic structural diagram of the control module of this application.

[0011] Explanation of the reference numerals in the drawings: 100, Power distribution module; 100a, Left power distribution module; 100b, Right power distribution module; 101, Airframe; 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, Switch unit; 150, First safety protection module; 160, Second safety protection module; 170, Negative bus; 200, Battery module; 201, First battery module; 202, Second battery module; 203, Third battery module; 204, Fourth battery module; 300, Onboard load group; 301, First onboard load group; 302, Second onboard load group; 303, Third onboard load group; 304, Fourth onboard 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.

[0012] The realization of the purpose, functional features and advantages of this application will be further described with reference to the embodiments and the accompanying drawings. Detailed implementation manners

[0013] It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the technical solutions of this application and are not used to limit this application.

[0014] To better understand the technical solutions of this application, the following will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings of the specification and specific implementation manners.

[0015] The main solution of the embodiment of this application is: determine whether the state of the power device of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft is abnormal; in the case of determining that the state of the power device is abnormal, control the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state.

[0016] The propulsion assembly in the powerplant of an eVTOL includes an electric motor, a propeller, and other accessories, which are used to provide the thrust / lift or lift required by the eVTOL. And eVTOLs of pure electric type, hydrogen-electric or gasoline-electric types mainly use high-voltage electrical energy as the energy source for the propulsion assembly of the whole aircraft. Therefore, the powerplant also includes a battery module and a power distribution module to distribute the high-voltage electrical energy provided by the battery module to each load, such as the propulsion assembly. Taking the propulsion assembly as an example, in order to meet the safety requirements of eVTOLs, the propulsion assembly generally has a redundant design. For example, the propulsion 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 propulsion 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 propulsion assembly will also cause the performance degradation of the propulsion assembly, 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 propulsion assembly, there is always a certain risk for eVTOLs. Therefore, in order to ensure the flight safety of eVTOLs, it is necessary to make the failed motor winding resume operation so that the propulsion 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, the discharge rate of the battery module supplying power to the other motor winding will increase, and high-rate discharge for a long time will cause a risk of thermal runaway for the battery module. In addition, the battery module has a low tolerance for the instantaneous response of airborne loads such as the propulsion assembly, thus posing a safety hazard.

[0017] Therefore, the present invention provides a solution. The power distribution module has a common bus state including a common bus, and 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 an abnormal state occurs in the powerplant (battery module side fault and / or propulsion assembly side fault), the power distribution module can be controlled to switch to the common bus state. Thus, when a battery module side fault occurs, other battery modules can be used to resume power supply to the propulsion assembly to ensure that the propulsion assembly can continue to be powered on to improve the safety of the eVTOL, or when a propulsion assembly side fault occurs, all the battery modules can be used to supply power in parallel, thereby avoiding the risk of thermal runaway due to high-rate discharge of some battery modules, that is, it can also improve safety.

[0018] It should be noted that the execution subject of this embodiment can be a computing service device with data processing, network communication, and program running functions, such as the control module of an eVTOL. It should be noted that the control module can be the flight control system, avionics system, etc. of the eVTOL, or it can also be the general term for each control unit of the eVTOL, such as the flight control system, avionics system, and the power distribution control unit configured in or connected to the power distribution module.

[0019] Based on this, an embodiment of the present application provides a vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method, referring to Figure 1 , Figure 1 which is a schematic flowchart of the first embodiment of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method of the present application.

[0020] In this embodiment, the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method includes step S100 to step S200; Step S100, determine whether the state of the power device of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft is abnormal.

[0021] Step S200, when it is determined that the state of the power device is abnormal, control the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state.

[0022] Among them, the power device includes at least two propulsion components, at least two battery modules 200, and a power distribution module 100; the power distribution module 100 is connected to each battery module 200 and is also connected to the propulsion components; 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, and each battery module 200 is connected to at least part of all propulsion components through the corresponding independent bus 130 for power supply. 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 battery modules 200 are connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least part of the propulsion components are connected to the output side of the common bus.

[0023] Specifically, the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft in this embodiment includes eVTOLs using power types such as pure electric, hydrogen electric, and hybrid electric, and of course also includes other aircraft with on-board power supplies. It can be understood that taking eVTOL as an example, the battery module 200 includes but is not limited to power batteries and emergency power supplies, etc., which are used to supply electrical energy to the propulsion components of the eVTOL, and can also supply electrical energy to on-board loads such as avionics systems, on-board environmental control systems, and on-board lighting systems. In addition, the battery module 200 includes but is not limited to on-board power supplies such as main power supplies and emergency power supplies. The on-board loads can be high-voltage power loads, which can be divided into multiple on-board load groups 300. Under normal circumstances, each battery module 200 supplies power to the corresponding on-board load group 300. Each on-board load group 300 is configured to include at least a part of at least one propulsion component: for example, it can be configured as the whole of the propulsion component, or it can also only include a part of a propulsion component, such as one of the motor windings, etc., and this embodiment does not limit this. Of course, the on-board load group 300 can also include other on-board loads, and this embodiment does not limit this. Please refer to Figure 4 , each battery module 200 is respectively connected to a motor winding of 4 propulsion components for power supply, so that each on-board load group 300 includes at least 4 propulsion components. The following takes each on-board load group 300 including multiple propulsion components as an example for specific elaboration.

[0024] The power distribution module 100 is an electrical energy transmission system between each battery module 200 and each on-board load group 300. Therefore, please refer to Figure 2 and Figure 3 , the power distribution module 100 has an input end 110 connected to each battery module 200 to receive the electrical energy provided by the battery module 200 connected thereto. The power distribution module 100 also has an output end 120 connected to each propulsion component in the on-board load group 300, and the output end 120 conveys the distributed electrical energy to each propulsion component in the on-board 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 a motor winding of a propulsion component. 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 on-board load group 300 through an independent bus 130, so as to convey the electrical energy provided by a battery module 200 to the corresponding on-board load group 300 through this independent bus 130. For example, please refer to Figure 6, the first independent bus 130a establishes a power supply path between the first battery module 201 and the first airborne load group 301, the second independent bus 130b establishes a power supply path between the second battery module 202 and the second airborne load group 302, the third independent bus 130c establishes a power supply path between the third battery module 203 and the third airborne load group 303, and the fourth independent bus 130d establishes a power supply path between the fourth battery module 204 and the fourth airborne load group 304.

[0025] 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 all the input ends 110 corresponding to the reconstructed independent buses 130 are all connected to the input side of the common bus, and all the output ends 120 corresponding to the reconstructed independent buses are connected to the output side of the common bus, so that at least part of the battery modules 200 supply power to the corresponding multiple output ends 120 together.

[0026] Of course, 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 a common bus, so that 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 battery modules 200 in the normal state supply power to all the airborne load groups 300 together. The following also takes the example that all the independent buses 130 are reconstructed into a common bus for further elaboration.

[0027] It should be noted that when the eVTOL is 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 paths where the independent buses 130 are located are independent of each other, there is a redundancy design in the multi-independent bus state, which can prevent the collapse of the entire power distribution module 100 and even the power plant caused by a single point of failure. When it is determined that the state of the power plant is abnormal, the power distribution module 100 is controlled to switch to the common bus state. It is worth mentioning that the power distribution module 100 switches to the common bus state to solve the problem of abnormal state of the power plant, and will not switch back to the multi-independent bus state during the current flight mission after switching to the common bus state. It can be understood that the abnormal state of the power plant includes but is not limited to the failure of the propulsion component and the abnormal power supply of the battery module. Among them, the failure of the propulsion component includes but is not limited to the failure of the propeller of the propulsion component and the failure of at least part of the motor windings in the propulsion component.

[0028] For the specific structure of the power distribution module 100, in one embodiment, the power distribution module 100 may simultaneously include a multi-bus circuit structure required for multiple independent bus states and a common bus circuit structure required for a common bus state. The two are independent of each other, and the power distribution module 100 is switched between multiple independent bus states and the common bus state through an additionally provided 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 multiple 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, thereby greatly increasing the overall weight of the aircraft.

[0029] Alternatively, in another embodiment, the power distribution module 100 performs a state conversion between multiple independent bus states and the common bus state through the switch unit 140. The number of switch units 140 is the same as the number of independent buses 130. Specifically, the power distribution module 100 further includes at least two switch units 140. The number of switch units 140 is the same as the number of independent buses 130, and at least two independent buses 130 are connected in a switchable manner through at least two switch units 140. When all the switch units 140 are disconnected, the power distribution module 100 is in the multiple independent bus state. When at least some of the switch units 140 are turned on, at least some of the independent buses 130 corresponding to the switch units 140 are reconnected to form a common bus, so that the power distribution module 100 switches to the common bus state.

[0030] Regarding the connection of at least two independent buses 130 in a switchable manner through at least two switch units 140, as an option in this embodiment, the switch units 140 correspond to the independent buses 130 one by one, all the switch units 140 are connected in parallel with each other, and each switch unit 140 is respectively connected to the corresponding independent bus 130.

[0031] Specifically, please refer to Figure 2, the power distribution module 100 further includes a plurality of switch units 140 connected in parallel with each other. The number of switch units 140 is the same as that of the independent buses 130 and they correspond to each other one by one. One end of each switch unit 140 is connected to the corresponding independent bus 130, and the other end of each switch unit 140 is connected to the same cable to achieve parallel connection with each other. In this way, when all the switch 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 operating conditions, so that the power distribution module 100 is in a multi-independent bus state. In the multi-independent bus state, any failure of a battery module 200 or a load circuit will not affect other independent buses in the power distribution module 100, thereby improving the safety margin. And when all the switch units 140 are turned on, all the independent buses 130 will also be connected to each other to reconstruct a common bus. Of course, some of the switch units 140 can also be turned on, so that the corresponding part of the 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.

[0032] Alternatively, as another option of this embodiment, all the independent buses 130 of the power distribution module 100 are connected end to end in sequence, and a switch unit 140 is provided between two adjacent independent buses 130. Thus, when all the switch units 140 are turned off, the power distribution module 100 is in a multi-independent bus state, and when all the switch units 140 are turned on, all the independent buses 130 are connected and reconstructed into a common bus, so that the power distribution module 100 is switched to the common bus state. Specifically, the power distribution module 100 includes a plurality of independent buses 130, and the plurality of independent buses 130 are numbered according to a certain rule, 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 a switch unit 140 is also connected between the first independent bus 130 and the last independent bus 130. In this way, all the independent buses 130 of the power distribution module 100 are connected in sequence through the switch units 140. When all the switch units 140 are turned on, all the independent buses 130 form a loop, and thus are also reconstructed into a common bus. Please refer to Figure 3 , when the power distribution module 100 includes two independent buses 130, the two independent buses 130 are connected by two switch units 140, thus forming a loop.

[0033] It can be understood that the independent bus 130 can be configured as a structure such as a bus bar. 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 reconfigured into a single bus bar, that is, all the independent buses are reconfigured into a common bus, thereby enabling the power distribution module 100 to switch to the common bus state. Of course, the independent bus 130 can also be configured as other bus components such as a bus. Additionally, 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, etc., and this embodiment does not limit this. 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 reconfigured into a common bus circuit structure through the switch units 140 connected in parallel with each other, thereby reducing the circuit components required for the power distribution module 100 to minimize the weight of the power distribution module 100 as much as possible.

[0034] Based on the above structure, in this embodiment, step S200 specifically includes: controlling at least some of the switch units of the power distribution module to conduct, so that the power distribution module switches from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state.

[0035] Alternatively, for an eVTOL, since at least two battery modules 200 are respectively located on both sides of the fuselage 101, for the convenience of arranging 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, all or part of the battery modules 200 on one side of the fuselage 101 are used for power distribution 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 propulsion components 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 for the two power distribution modules 100 to cooperate to ensure that the propulsion components remain powered on.

[0036] At this time, at least two battery modules 200 include a plurality of battery packs. For example, the battery modules 200 in the left area of the aircraft body belong to one battery pack, while the battery modules 200 in the right area belong to another battery pack. Of course, the battery modules 200 on one side of the fuselage can also be divided into at least two battery packs. The aforementioned power device includes at least two power distribution modules 100 and at least two switch units 140. The number of power distribution modules 100 is the same as and corresponds to the number of battery packs one by one. The battery modules 200 within the same battery pack are connected to the corresponding propulsion components through the corresponding power distribution modules 100. The independent buses 130 of all power distribution modules 100 are connectably and disconnectably connected through the switch units 140. In the case where all switch units 140 are disconnected, each power distribution module 100 is in a multi-independent bus state. In the case where all switch units 140 are turned on, each power distribution module 100 is in a common bus state, so that all the power distribution modules 100 in the power device are in the overall machine common bus state as a whole. At this time, at least some of the power distribution modules 100 not only have their internal independent buses 130 connected and reconstructed with each other, but also can be connected and reconstructed with the independent buses 130 of other power distribution modules 100 to form an overall machine common bus. At least some of all the battery modules 200 are connected in parallel to the input side of the overall machine common bus, and at least some of all the propulsion components are connected to the output side of the overall machine common bus. For example, please refer to Figure 5 , 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 through a cross cable 400.

[0037] It is worth mentioning that each independent bus 130 in each power distribution module 100 is adapted to be connected to the positive pole of the motor or the motor winding of the corresponding propulsion component, and the negative pole of the motor or the motor winding of the propulsion component is connected to the negative bus 170. Of course, the negative buses 170 of multiple power distribution modules 100 can be connected to each other or are respectively part of the same negative bus 170. For example, in some specific embodiments, the negative bus 170 of the left power distribution module 100a and the negative bus 170 of the right power distribution module 100b are connected through the first connection line 402 of the cross cable 400. Of course, each independent bus 130 in each power distribution module 100 can also be adapted to be connected to the negative pole of the motor or the motor winding of the corresponding propulsion component. At this time, the positive pole of the motor or the motor winding of the propulsion component is connected to the positive bus, which will not be elaborated here. The following will be described by taking the connection of the independent bus 130 to the positive pole of the motor or the motor winding as an example.

[0038] As an option of this embodiment, a switch unit 140 is connected in series to each independent bus 130 of each power distribution module 100, and all the switch units 140 are connected in parallel to each other. Please refer to Figure 6, 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 interfaces of each input terminal 110 are connected to the corresponding independent bus 130. Each independent bus 130 is then connected to the positive interface of the corresponding output terminal 120. The first independent bus 130a, the third independent bus through the switch unit BTC3, the second independent bus 130b through the switch unit BTC2, and the fourth independent bus 130d through the switch unit BTC4 are all connected to the second connection line 401 of the cross-connecting cable 400. And a negative bus 170 is further included in the left power distribution module 100a. The negative bus 170 is connected to the negative interfaces of each input terminal 110 and is also connected to the negative interfaces of each output terminal 120.

[0039] It can be understood that when at least part of the switch units 140 of all the power distribution modules 100 are turned on and connected in parallel with each other, at least part of all the independent buses 130 are connected, thereby reconstructing an overall machine common bus. It can be understood that in the case of the connection and reconstruction of part of the independent buses 130, for a single power distribution module 100, the independent buses 130 inside it may also be connected and reconstructed into a common bus, thereby forming part of the overall machine common bus. Or, the independent buses 130 inside it may also be directly connected and reconstructed with the independent buses 130 or the common bus of other power distribution modules 100 to form part of the overall machine common bus without being connected and reconstructed with other independent buses 130 belonging to the same power distribution module 100.

[0040] It can be understood that when all the independent buses 130 are connected and reconstructed into an overall machine common bus, the normally powered battery modules 200 are all connected to the overall machine common bus, while the battery modules 200 with abnormal power supply are not connected. At the same time, all the motor windings connected by multiple power distribution modules 100 are connected to the output side of the overall machine common bus. Similarly, the motor windings here are motor windings that can work normally, and the faulty motor windings are not connected to the overall machine common bus.

[0041] Or, as another option of this embodiment, all the independent buses 130 of all the power distribution modules 100 are connected end to end in sequence through the switch units 140. Specifically, within the same power distribution module 100, two adjacent independent buses 130 are connected to each other in a switchable manner through a switch unit 140. Among two adjacent power distribution modules 100, the last independent bus 130 of one power distribution module 100 is connected to the first independent bus 130 of the other power distribution module 100 in a switchable manner through a switch unit 140, and the first independent bus 130 of the first power distribution module 100 and the last independent bus 130 of the last power distribution module 100 are connected to each other in a switchable manner through a switch unit 140. Please refer to Figure 7, 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 the four independent buses 130 are connected end to end in sequence. 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 three battery modules 200 in the fuselage 101 can supply power to loads such as all motor windings on the eVTOL.

[0042] Thus, in this embodiment, when at least some of the switch units 140 of all the power distribution modules 100 on the eVTOL are turned on, at least some of the independent buses 130 on the eVTOL can be connected to each other to be reconfigured into a whole-aircraft common bus. After being reconfigured into a whole-aircraft common bus, all the normally operating battery modules 200 on the eVTOL are respectively connected to the input side of the whole-aircraft common bus through their respective input terminals 110, and all the airborne loads such as the motor windings of the normally operating propulsion components are connected to the output side of the whole-aircraft common bus through the output terminals 120. Thus, it is not only limited to the power grid reorganization within a single power distribution module 100, but also includes the power grid reorganization between multiple power distribution modules 100 on the eVTOL. It can be understood that for the eVTOL, the battery modules 200 can include multiple ones and are distributed at different positions of the fuselage 101, such as symmetrically arranged on different sides of the fuselage 101 and cooperating with different power distribution modules 100. When the power supply of the battery module 200 on either side is abnormal, such as when a collision or other accident occurs on one side of the fuselage, resulting in a fault of the battery module 200 on that side, multiple or all of the power distribution modules 100 on the fuselage can be reconfigured into a whole-aircraft common bus, and the power distribution modules 100 arranged at other positions on the fuselage are used for power supply, thereby further improving the safety redundancy.

[0043] Based on the above structure, in this embodiment, step S200 specifically includes: controlling at least some of the switch units of all the power distribution modules to be turned on, so that all the power distribution modules are switched from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state.

[0044] In addition, it is easy to understand that in order to meet the safety requirements of eVTOL, the motor in the electric motor of the propulsion component as described above is a dual-winding motor. Each motor winding uses 1 motor controller to provide the required power respectively, and the motor controllers connected to the 2 motor windings of each motor are powered by different battery modules 200 respectively. After a single motor winding fails or loses power, the remaining motor winding can still be used to 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 propulsion component. Only the performance of the entire propulsion component can be degraded to provide the required power, and the working time that the motor winding can support under such conditions is short, making it difficult to support the continued safe flight of eVTOL. 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 propulsion 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 the energy density, grouping rate of the battery module 200, and the installation space and weight limitations of the battery module 200 on the aircraft, the power of a single battery module 200 is certain, which 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 a challenge that needs to be solved urgently. 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 grid reconstruction conditions of this embodiment are proposed.

[0045] 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 windings. At this time, all the battery modules 200 in the normal state together provide electrical energy for all the propulsion components. When 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 parallel-connected battery modules 200 supply power together to prevent a single battery module 200 from entering an unsafe state. Specifically, a single propulsion component is arranged on the wing or tail of the aircraft and is used to provide the thrust, lift and / or at least part of the lift required for eVTOL flight. For the motor of the propulsion component, it includes at least two motor windings, and different motor windings are connected to different battery modules 200. Since the propulsion components are respectively connected to multiple different battery modules 200, when the power supply of the battery module 200 connected to any motor winding is abnormal, other battery modules 200 can still supply electrical energy to the remaining motor windings to ensure that the propulsion component can maintain a minimum level of operation. Of course, when other battery modules 200 can still supply electrical energy to the remaining motor windings, the flight control system can perform corresponding redistribution of thrust, lift and / or lift, such as adjusting the output power of the remaining motor windings in at least two motor windings.

[0046] 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 propulsion component are connected to different independent buses 130. Please refer to Figure 4 , the first motor winding 611 of a propulsion 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 propulsion 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 propulsion component are respectively connected to different battery modules 200. Thus, under normal operating conditions, the power distribution module 100 is in the multi-independent bus state, and two different battery modules 200 respectively supply electrical energy to different motor windings in the same propulsion component 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 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, thus still ensuring that all the motor windings can be continuously powered on and operate normally, and further ensuring that all the propulsion components can operate normally and avoiding performance degradation.

[0047] In addition, the fixed rotor unit 310 and the tilt rotor unit 320 are both propulsion components arranged on the eVTOL. As shown in Figure 5, the 4 outer propulsion components of the eVTOL are all fixed rotor units 310, while the 4 inner propulsion components are all tilt-rotor units 320. 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 configuration, that is, the entire tilt-rotor unit 320 is rotatable between the cruise position and the vertical takeoff and landing position, so as to realize 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 configuration, 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 realize the switch between the cruise state and the vertical takeoff and landing state. When the eVTOL is in the cruise stage, the fixed rotor unit 310 can stop operating, and the propeller can be feathered, folded, or the blades can be retracted to reduce drag, or the rotational speed can also be reduced to enter the low-power mode.

[0048] It is easy to understand that the fixed rotor unit 310 stops operating or enters the low-power mode during the cruise stage, and during the vertical takeoff and landing stage and the tilt transition stage, 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. In this way, the power consumption demands between the fixed rotor unit 310 and the tilt-rotor unit 320 are inconsistent. If any one battery module 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 in the normal state. 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 cost of the eVTOL.

[0049] 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. Among all the airborne load groups 300, the number of motor windings belonging to the fixed rotor units 310 is the same, and the number of motor windings belonging to the tilt-rotor units 320 is the same. Please refer to Figure 4 , it can be seen that the first battery module 201 powers 4 motor windings respectively through the corresponding first independent bus 130a, the second battery module 202 powers 4 motor windings respectively through the corresponding second independent bus 130b, the third battery module 203 powers 4 motor windings through the third independent bus 130c, and the fourth battery module 204 powers 4 motor windings through the fourth independent bus 130d. Among them, 2 motor windings belong to different fixed rotor units 310 respectively, and the other 2 motor windings belong to different tilt-rotor units 320 respectively. In this way, approximate discharge balance can be 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 approximately, 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. 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.

[0050] In addition, the fixed rotor units 310 connected by the same battery module 200 through the same independent bus are grouped in pairs, and the tilt-rotor units 320 connected by the same battery module 200 are grouped in pairs. When the eVTOL is in the vertical take-off and landing stage, the projections of the fixed rotor units 310 in the same group or the tilt-rotor units 320 in the same group on the horizontal plane are centrosymmetric. Thus, when any battery module 200 fails, on the horizontal plane where the eVTOL is located, its power output is reduced centrosymmetrically, so as to avoid the situation that the torque of the unilateral propulsion component is not balanced, ensure the aerodynamic balance during the flight of the eVTOL, and also facilitate the flight control system to adjust the pull / thrust and / or lift distribution to ensure normal flight.

[0051] Based on this, as an option of this embodiment, the power grid reconstruction condition provided is that at least one propulsion component fails. At this time, step S100 specifically includes: when it is determined that any propulsion component fails, determining that the state of the power device is abnormal.

[0052] Specifically, when the control module is the general term for the flight control system, the avionics system, or each control unit of the aircraft, when it detects a failure of any propulsion component of the eVTOL, it determines that the state of the power plant is abnormal and controls the power distribution module 100 to perform power grid reconstruction through the power distribution control unit. Or, when the control module is the power distribution control unit, when the flight control system or the avionics system detects a failure of any propulsion component, it sends information such as a propulsion component failure signal or a propulsion component failure response instruction to the power distribution control unit. After receiving the above information, the power distribution control unit controls the power distribution module 100 to perform the corresponding power grid reconstruction operation, that is, switches the power distribution module 100 to the common bus state.

[0053] Among them, the occurrence of a propulsion component failure in a propulsion component includes, but is not limited to: all the motor windings of the propulsion component fail and cannot work properly, or the propeller of the propulsion component fails and cannot work properly. It is easy to understand that in the case where all the motor windings of a certain propulsion component fail or the propeller fails, the flight control system of the eVTOL needs to perform power redistribution for aerodynamic balance, that is, reduce the power of the symmetric propulsion component of the certain propulsion component, and even shut down the symmetric propulsion component. Please refer to Figure 5 , after the outermost propulsion component in the nose side area of the left wing of the eVTOL fails, the outermost propulsion component in the tail side area of the right wing and its projection on the horizontal plane are centrosymmetric to each other. In order to maintain flight stability, it will also be shut down, which will inevitably lead to an overcapacity of the battery module 200 connected to the aforementioned propulsion component. In addition, in order to maintain the required power for flight, the required power of the entire eVTOL remains unchanged. Therefore, after the outermost propulsion component in the nose side area of the left wing of the eVTOL fails, the flight control system will also control some propulsion components to increase the output power. In this way, it will inevitably lead to high-rate discharge of the battery module 200 connected to the propulsion component with increased power, resulting in a faster decrease in the battery power compared to other battery modules 200, which is not conducive to the maintenance of all battery modules 200 during the same maintenance cycle.

[0054] In this embodiment, when a propulsion component failure occurs, the power distribution module 100 is controlled to switch to the common bus state for power grid reorganization, so that all the battery modules 200 are connected in parallel and powered together to achieve discharge balance among the battery modules 200, thereby improving maintenance economy. In addition, 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 the battery modules 200 are connected in parallel and evenly powered, which can also improve the safety of the whole machine. Thus, in the related art, when a single motor winding of the propulsion component fails, the flight control system needs to shut down the symmetric propulsion component or control the performance degradation of the symmetric propulsion component.

[0055] In this embodiment, not only the power output of the symmetric propulsion components is adjusted, but also the power grid is reorganized through the power distribution module 100. At this time, the control module is the flight control system of the eVTOL, or it can also be the general term for each control unit such as the flight control system, the avionics system, and the power distribution control unit configured inside or connected to the power distribution module. Step S200 specifically includes: Step S201: Control the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state, and perform the power redistribution operation of the propulsion components.

[0056] Step S202: When the power distribution module switches from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state, control each propulsion component to output power according to the allocated power.

[0057] Among them, the power redistribution operation of the propulsion components at least includes: shutting down or adjusting the output power of the propulsion component with abnormal state and the symmetric propulsion component of the propulsion component with abnormal state, and / or adjusting the output power of the remaining propulsion components to obtain the desired pulling force or thrust or lift.

[0058] Specifically, the control module performing the power redistribution operation of the propulsion components includes but is not limited to the following operations: (1) Shut down both the propulsion component with abnormal state and the symmetric propulsion component of the propulsion component with abnormal state. At this time, both of the two symmetric propulsion components in the eVTOL lose pulling force / lift / thrust, thereby preventing the eVTOL from pitching / yawing / rolling to the side where any propulsion component has an abnormal state.

[0059] (2) Shut down both the propulsion component with abnormal state and the symmetric propulsion component of the propulsion component with abnormal state, and adjust the output power of the remaining propulsion components to obtain the desired thrust and / or lift. That is, when the pulling force / thrust / lift currently provided by the remaining propulsion components is difficult to meet the requirements, the flight control system of the eVTOL can control each of the remaining propulsion components to increase the power, so as to obtain a higher power output and obtain the desired pulling force / thrust / lift.

[0060] (3) Adjust the output power of the symmetric propulsion component of the propulsion component with abnormal state to match the pulling force / thrust / lift provided by the propulsion component with abnormal state. That is, although any propulsion component has an abnormal state, when it has not completely lost power or in other cases where it is required to provide the corresponding pulling force / thrust / lift, the output power of the other symmetric propulsion component can be reduced, so as to ensure the aerodynamic balance of the eVTOL during flight.

[0061] (4) Adjust the output power of the symmetric propulsion components and the remaining propulsion components of the status abnormal propulsion assembly to obtain the desired pulling force / thrust / lift. Since eVTOL is used in complex urban environments, in order to achieve a more ideal aerodynamic balance throughout the flight profile, when the flight control system of eVTOL detects that the output power of a propulsion component decreases or even fails due to a battery module 200 failure or other reasons, it will actively reduce the power of the propulsion component symmetric to the failed propulsion component, thereby ensuring the aerodynamic balance of the eVTOL on the symmetric side. In addition, the flight control system of eVTOL will also control the remaining propulsion components to increase the power, so as to obtain a higher power output to obtain the desired pulling force / thrust / lift.

[0062] In addition, it can be understood that in the normal state, the battery module 200 supplies power to the corresponding connected propulsion components. After any one of its corresponding propulsion components fails, the battery module 200 will enter an abnormal power supply state, resulting in an adverse effect due to the inconsistent state between this battery module 200 and other battery modules 200. In this regard, step S200 is specifically: synchronously control each switch unit to conduct, so that the power distribution module switches from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state.

[0063] Specifically, synchronously controlling each switch unit to conduct can send the aforementioned propulsion component failure information or propulsion component failure response instruction, or the failure information unit generated by the power distribution control unit according to the aforementioned information to each switch unit 140, or the switch controller connected to each switch unit 140 by the power distribution control unit in the control module, so that each switch unit 140 roughly synchronously performs a state switch, that is, conducts. In this embodiment, the switch units 140 corresponding to all independent buses are roughly synchronously conducted, so that all independent buses 130 are roughly synchronously connected and reconstructed to form a common bus or an overall machine common bus, thereby possibly avoiding the corresponding battery module 200 being in an abnormal power supply state.

[0064] In addition, in response to a failure on the battery module side of the power device, as another option of this embodiment, the power grid reconstruction condition provided is that at least one battery module has an abnormal power supply. At this time, step S100 specifically includes: when it is determined that any battery module has an abnormal power supply, determine the abnormal state of the power device.

[0065] Specifically, 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 propulsion components are also about to face the risk of performance degradation or loss of power, and the eVTOL may fall into a dangerous state.

[0066] Therefore, when power supply abnormality occurs in any battery module 200, the control distribution module 100 is controlled to switch to the common bus state, and the electric energy provided by other normally operating battery modules 200 can be distributed to the on-board load group 300 corresponding to the any battery module 200, so as to ensure the continuous supply of electric energy to the corresponding on-board load group 300 and ensure the stable on-board electric power of the on-board load group 300. For eVTOL, ensuring the continuous supply of on-board load electric energy of eVTOL also further improves the safety margin of eVTOL. In addition, the parallel structure of the remaining battery modules 200 can force the voltages of the remaining battery modules 200 to tend to be consistent. The voltages of the remaining battery modules 200 are always inconsistent before actual parallel connection, and the load does not stop working during the parallel connection process. After parallel connection, the output current of the battery module 200 with a higher voltage is larger, and soon the voltages among the multiple remaining battery modules 200 tend to be consistent. For the power distribution system in the power device, the voltage stability can be maintained, the voltage fluctuation is smaller, and the fault tolerance ability is also higher, 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 larger, the overall safety of eVTOL can be guaranteed. Of course, the power supply abnormality of the battery module 200 may include other situations where the battery module 200 fails, is damaged by foreign objects, or fails due to high temperature and cannot normally supply electric energy outward.

[0067] In addition, when power supply abnormality occurs in any battery module, the motor winding of the propulsion component connected thereto fails, and under the control of the flight control system, the other motor winding of the corresponding propulsion component will briefly increase the power. As a result, the battery module 200 connected to the other motor winding also enters a high-rate discharge state, that is, enters a dangerous discharge state. Such a dangerous discharge state may cause the battery module 200 to enter the rapid voltage drop interval of the battery discharge curve in advance, resulting in a rapid voltage drop, or even the actual slope of the discharge curve increases abnormally, resulting in a rapid voltage drop to the cut-off voltage.

[0068] For this reason, in one embodiment, step S200 specifically includes steps S210 to S220: Step S210, control the switch units corresponding to the remaining independent buses except the abnormal independent bus to be turned on.

[0069] The abnormal independent bus is the independent bus corresponding to the battery module with power supply abnormality.

[0070] Step S220, when the switch units corresponding to the remaining independent buses are all turned on, control the switch unit corresponding to the abnormal independent bus to be turned on.

[0071] Specifically, the abnormal power supply of the battery module includes, but is not limited to, being determined by the battery management system on the battery module side, or being determined by the power distribution control unit by monitoring the circuit parameters of the branch where the battery module and its independent bus are located. The circuit parameters include, but are not limited to, current value, voltage value, 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 corresponding to at least one independent bus 130 may have an abnormal power supply. At this time, this part of the independent bus 130 is determined as an abnormal independent bus.

[0072] In this embodiment, all the switch units 140 are not turned on synchronously, but are turned on in two batches in two stages, so the connection reconstruction of the independent bus 130 is also divided into two stages. Among them, the independent bus 130 corresponding to the battery module 200 in the normal state is first subjected to connection reconstruction in the first stage to form a common bus / whole-machine common bus, and then enters the second stage, that is, the independent bus 130 corresponding to the battery module 200 with abnormal power supply is connected to this common bus or the whole-machine common bus, so as to complete the entire power grid reconstruction process.

[0073] In this embodiment, from the perspective of battery safety in the first stage, the independent buses corresponding to the battery modules 200 in the normal state are subjected to connection reconstruction, so that the remaining battery modules 200 in the normal state can be connected in parallel with each other. As mentioned above, the capacity is larger after multiple battery modules 200 are connected in parallel, and the tolerance for instantaneous response is greater, so that the situation of rapid abnormal decrease in battery voltage can be avoided. In the second stage, from the perspective of the power required for flight safety, the load of the abnormal independent bus is connected to the output side of the common bus / whole-machine common bus, so as to ensure the continuous power supply of the corresponding airborne load group 300 and ensure the stable electric power on the airborne load group 300.

[0074] It is worth mentioning that in the above-mentioned first stage, that is, step S210 can be executed by the flight control system in the control module, or can also be executed by the power distribution control unit.

[0075] Taking the execution by the flight control system as an example, after the power distribution control unit determines the abnormal power supply of the battery module by monitoring the circuit parameters, it reports the abnormal battery power supply to the avionics system and / or the flight control system. The flight control system then issues a power grid reconstruction instruction to the power distribution control unit, and the power distribution control unit executes step S210 and step S220.

[0076] Alternatively, taking the execution by the power distribution control unit as an example, when the power distribution control unit reports the abnormal battery power supply to the avionics system and / or the flight control system, it also synchronously executes step S210, that is, the power distribution control unit controls the switch units corresponding to each remaining independent bus except the abnormal independent bus to be turned on. In this way, when the battery module has an abnormal power supply, the power distribution control unit can first execute the preset response program and send a power grid emergency reconstruction instruction to the remaining independent buses except the abnormal independent bus among all the independent buses 130, thereby triggering the switch units corresponding to the remaining independent buses to be turned on. It should be noted that the first stage is autonomously carried out by the power distribution control unit, that is, it quickly responds when the judgment condition is met. And the second stage can be after the first stage is completed, the power distribution control unit reports to the flight control system, and then responds to the instructions issued by the flight control system.

[0077] It is not difficult to see that in this embodiment, the first stage can be executed by the power distribution control unit without the instruction of the flight control system, thereby improving the response efficiency and effectively avoiding the situation of rapid decrease in battery voltage from the perspective of battery safety.

[0078] In addition, when faults such as short circuit, thermal runaway, and independent bus insulation are not excluded, connecting the independent bus 130 to other independent buses 130 to reconstruct into a common bus will generate a grid connection risk. For example, when the normal power supply channel where the independent bus 130 is located fails to supply power normally due to a short circuit fault, if the power grid reconstruction process is carried out, it will cause the common bus / overall machine common bus to be in a short circuit fault state, and then lead to catastrophic consequences for the eVTOL.

[0079] Therefore, in an embodiment, step S220 specifically includes: Step S221, detecting whether the abnormal independent bus has a grid connection risk fault.

[0080] Step S222, when the abnormal independent bus does not have a grid connection risk fault, controlling the switch unit corresponding to the abnormal independent bus to be turned on.

[0081] Specifically, the grid connection risk faults include but are not limited to short circuit faults, thermal runaway risks, and independent bus insulation. The control module can make a judgment according to the current curve, voltage curve, etc. of the normal power supply channel at the current moment, or can also analyze and judge according to the state curve of the corresponding battery module 200 during the time period.

[0082] Alternatively, in a specific embodiment, step S221 specifically includes: Step S2211, detecting whether each safety protection module of the line where the abnormal independent bus is located is in a normal state.

[0083] Step S2212, when all safety protection modules are in normal states, determine that the abnormal independent bus does not have grid connection risk faults.

[0084] Step S2213, when at least one safety protection module is in an abnormal state, determine that the abnormal independent bus has grid connection risk faults.

[0085] Specifically, each independent bus 130 in the power distribution module 100 is independent of each other under normal working 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, the power distribution module 100 further includes: at least two first safety protection modules 150 and / or at least two second safety protection modules 160. The number of the first safety protection modules 150 is the same as the number of the battery modules 200 and they correspond to each other one by one. Both ends of the first safety protection module 150 are respectively connected to the corresponding battery module 200 and the corresponding independent bus 130; the second safety protection module 160 is arranged between the corresponding independent bus 130 and the propulsion assembly.

[0086] Specifically, a first safety protection module 150 is configured between the mutually connected battery module 200 and the independent bus 130, so that when a fault 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. 6 and Figure 7 , 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.

[0087] Similarly, a second safety protection module 160 is configured between a group of output terminals 120 and the independent bus 130 that are mutually connected, so that when a fault occurs in the power distribution channel or the propulsion assembly, the power distribution channel and the propulsion assembly can be electrically isolated. For example, please refer to FIGS. 6 and Figure 7 , 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. 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...).

[0088] It can be understood that the first safety protection module 150 and / or the second safety protection module 160 can be configured as a relay, a circuit breaker, a fuse, or the like. 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 circuit failure that cannot affect the power distribution function of other power distribution modules, this embodiment also configures fuses and / or contactors between each battery module 200 and the independent bus 130, and fuses are configured between the independent bus 130 and each load to ensure that there are corresponding electrical isolation means when a failure occurs in the power supply, power distribution channel, or high-voltage load.

[0089] In this embodiment, the safety protection module of the line where the abnormal independent bus is located includes the first safety protection module 150 and / or the second safety protection module 160 of the line where the abnormal independent bus is located. The control module detects whether the first safety protection module 150 and / or the second safety protection module 160 is in an abnormal state. When at least one of them is in an abnormal state, it is determined that the abnormal independent bus has a grid connection risk fault. And when none of them is in an abnormal state, it is determined that the abnormal independent bus does not have a grid connection risk fault. Thus, when the abnormal independent bus has a grid connection risk, it is not incorporated into the reconstructed bus.

[0090] In addition, since the power distribution module 100 may be involved in the voltage value reduction caused by the normal power-off after the eVTOL or other aircraft lands, in order to further ensure the accuracy of the state switch, before the control switch unit is turned on, it will also be detected whether the aircraft is in a flight state. In the case where the aircraft is in a flight state, the foregoing step S200 is executed. Among them, the flight state is judged by the ground-air state periodically sent by the avionics system.

[0091] In addition, it should be noted that in the above embodiments, the difficulty of flight control is reduced by controlling the time to switch to the common bus state. Since the lift provided on the left and right is inconsistent when a single battery module fails, resulting in instability of the aircraft, the flight control system needs to reallocate the power of the remaining motor windings to achieve the flight stability of the whole aircraft. In the above embodiments, the time to switch from the independent bus state to the common bus state is controlled within milliseconds to reduce the impact on flight safety caused by battery module side failures. Specifically, controlling the power grid reconstruction time within 1000 ms can ensure that the power battery or electric engine caused by the failure will not be overloaded for a long time. During this period, that is, when the whole machine has not completed the high-voltage power distribution network reconstruction, the aircraft will rely on the self-overdischarge ability of the power battery or the peak power burst ability of the electric engine, and maintain the aerodynamic attitude balance for a short time through a reasonable control rate algorithm; after the power grid reconstruction is completed, the aircraft's propulsion components will be smoothly transitioned in power distribution through the control rate algorithm.

[0092] The above 1000 ms processing mechanism stage includes: ⑴ Fault identification and determination. When an undervoltage fault occurs, the sampling time and logical determination should be less than 200 ms. Within this time range, the control module needs to complete the determination of the fault and put the whole machine / system into the emergency reconstruction state; ⑵ Fault handling When it is determined that the fault is valid (already in the power grid reconstruction state), all / part of the switch units need to be closed. This includes the signal transmission, control module decision-making, and switch unit actuation response time of 200 ms. Within this time, the equipment needs to complete the closing of all / part of the switch units; If the fault is a battery module fault, it is also necessary to determine that there is no grid connection risk (insulation, short-circuit risk, and battery thermal runaway risk) for the independent bus corresponding to the faulty battery module, and the required completion time is within 500 ms.

[0093] Then close the remaining contactors. This includes the signal transmission, controller decision-making, and contactor actuation response time of 200 ms. Within this time, all switch units are closed and the grid connection recombination is successful.

[0094] ⑷ Fault feedback closed-loop After the fault handling is completed, the feedback time is not included in the handling time, but it is required that the feedback time does not exceed 200 ms. The remaining 100 ms is the tolerance time.

[0095] For the convenience of understanding, two examples are provided below: Example 1: Please refer to Figure 6 And Figure 8, the power distribution module 100 includes a switch control unit connected to each switch unit 140. When the circuit parameter acquisition unit configured in the power distribution module 100 detects that the voltage of the first independent bus 130a is lower than the preset threshold, through the ground-air status periodically sent by the avionics system of the aircraft control system, if the status is determined to be in the air at this time (the status is determined to be the pre-frame dwell segment), then the power grid reconstruction process is entered. In the power distribution control unit, the circuit parameter acquisition unit corresponding to the first independent bus 130a and / or the corresponding switch control unit send a closing request to the switch control units corresponding to the remaining 3 independent buses 130 through the communication bus and the I / O interface, and at the same time send an undervoltage fault alarm to the avionics system and the BCU (Battery Control Unit).

[0096] After the control units of the remaining 3 independent buses and their corresponding circuit parameter acquisition units receive the closing request, they respectively detect the voltage and insulation resistance value of their corresponding independent buses 130. After passing the detection, they respectively close the switch unit BTC2, the switch unit BTC3, and the switch unit BTC4.

[0097] After the power distribution control unit confirms that the remaining switch units BTC2, BTC3, and BTC4 are all closed through the auxiliary contact status detection and the current monitor value, it acquires whether the fuse BF1 and the fuse F9 corresponding to the first independent bus 130a are in a normal state. After feedback that the fuse status is normal, it waits for the BCU and the avionics system to disconnect the BMC (Battery Main Contactor) of the line where the first independent bus 130a is located; when it detects that the BMC is disconnected, it controls the corresponding switch control unit to close the switch unit BTC1 corresponding to the first independent bus 130a. Finally, it detects the electrical parameters of each circuit after the power grid reconstruction, and if there is no abnormality, it reports that the power grid reconstruction is completed.

[0098] Example 2: Please refer to Figure 6 and Figure 9 . The avionics system reports a motor fault alarm, and combines the ground-air status periodically sent by the avionics system on the communication bus. If the status is determined to be in the air at this time (the status is determined to be the pre-frame dwell segment), then the power grid reconstruction process is entered, and the flight control system sends the generator fault unit information to each switch control unit in the power distribution control unit. After the switch control units corresponding to the switch units BTC1, BTC2, BTC3, and BTC4 receive the motor fault unit information, they respectively detect their voltage and insulation resistance value, and after passing, they close their respective switch units BTC1, BTC2, BTC3, and BTC4; after all the switch units BTC1, BTC2, BTC3, and BTC4 are closed, it detects the electrical parameters of each circuit after the reconstruction, and if there is no abnormality, it reports that the emergency reconstruction is completed.

[0099] In addition, the present invention further provides a vertical take-off and landing aircraft, which includes a power device and a control module. The specific structure of the power device refers to the above-mentioned embodiments and will not be elaborated herein one by one.

[0100] The control module includes at least one processor; and a memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein, the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor to enable the at least one processor to execute the vertical take-off and landing aircraft control method in the first embodiment above.

[0101] As Figure 10 shown, the control module may include a processing device 1001 (such as a central processing unit, a graphics processing unit, etc.), which can perform various appropriate actions and processes according to a program stored in a read-only memory (ROM: Read Only Memory) 1002 or a program loaded from a storage device 1003 into a random access memory (RAM: Random Access Memory) 1004. In the RAM 1004, various programs and data required for the operation of the control module are also stored. The processing device 1001, the ROM 1002, and the RAM 1004 are connected to each other through a bus 1005. An input / output (I / O) interface 1006 is also connected to the bus. Generally, the following systems may be connected to the I / O interface 1006: an input device 1007 including, for example, a touch screen, a touchpad, a keyboard, a mouse, an image sensor, a microphone, an accelerometer, a gyroscope, etc.; an output device 1008 including, for example, a liquid crystal display (LCD: Liquid Crystal Display), a speaker, a vibrator, etc.; a storage device 1003 including, for example, a magnetic tape, a hard disk, etc.; and a communication device 1009. The communication device 1009 can allow the control module to communicate wirelessly or wiredly with other devices (other devices on the eVTOL or non-airborne devices) to exchange data. Although the figure shows a control module with various systems, it should be understood that it is not required to implement or have all the systems shown. More or fewer systems may be alternatively implemented or had.

[0102] In particular, according to the embodiments disclosed in the present application, the processes described above with reference to the flowcharts can be implemented as computer software programs. For example, the embodiments disclosed in the present application include a computer program product, which includes a computer program carried on a computer-readable medium, and the computer program contains program codes for executing the methods shown in the flowcharts. In such an embodiment, the computer program can be downloaded and installed from a network through a communication device, or installed from a storage device 1003, or installed from a ROM 1002. When the computer program is executed by a processing device 1001, the above-mentioned functions defined in the methods of the embodiments disclosed in the present application are executed.

[0103] The control module provided in the present application adopts the vertical take-off and landing aircraft control method in the above-mentioned embodiment, and can solve the technical problem that the power distribution method of the power distribution module in the related art needs to be improved in terms of safety in case of failure. Compared with the related art, the beneficial effects of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft provided in the present application are the same as those of the vertical take-off and landing aircraft control method provided in the above-mentioned embodiment, and other technical features in the vertical take-off and landing aircraft are the same as those disclosed in the method of the previous embodiment, and will not be elaborated here.

[0104] It should be understood that each part disclosed in the present application can be implemented by hardware, software, firmware or a combination thereof. In the description of the above embodiments, specific features, structures, materials or characteristics can be combined in a suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples.

[0105] In one embodiment, each propulsion assembly includes at least two motor windings, and each independent bus 130 in the power distribution module 100 is respectively connected to at least one motor winding, and different motor windings in each propulsion assembly are connected to different independent buses.

[0106] Specifically, the aircraft body of the eVTOL refers to the main structure and support component body structure for supporting and protecting each component and the entire system of the eVTOL, including but not limited to the fuselage 101, wings and tail wings. The propulsion assembly is used to provide the pull / thrust and / or at least part of the lift generated by the eVTOL. It can be understood that for the eVTOL, the propulsion assembly includes propellers, electric engines and other accessories. The electric engine is used to drive the propeller to rotate. The electric engine includes a motor, a motor controller and other accessories.

[0107] For an eVTOL, the power distribution module 100 is used to supply electrical energy to at least part of each propulsion component, such as supplying electrical energy to components like the pitch-changing motor of the propeller and the motor controller of the electric engine. Of course, for an eVTOL with multiple power sources including electrical energy and hydrogen energy, the power distribution module 100 is used to supply power to a part of the propulsion components that use electrical energy. For any propulsion component, 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 propulsion component can maintain a certain power output. However, after one motor winding fails, the other motor winding cannot achieve 100% power output of the propulsion component through performance improvement. It can only keep the propulsion component with power output but requires performance degradation. Therefore, it is necessary to make the failed motor winding resume operation so that the propulsion component can work normally.

[0108] In addition, if the remaining motor windings need to increase the output power to meet the flight requirements after a single motor winding fails in the motor, that is, the power consumption increases, which causes 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, restricted by energy density, packing factor, 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 eVTOL whole-aircraft 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 propulsion component can work normally.

[0109] In this embodiment, the other end of the independent bus 130 is adapted to be connected to the motor winding of the propulsion component of the aircraft, and different motor windings in the propulsion component are connected to different independent buses 130. Thus, under normal operating conditions, the power distribution module 100 is in a multi-independent bus operating state, and two different battery modules 200 respectively supply electrical energy to different motor windings in the same propulsion component 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 motor windings are connected to the output side of the common bus, thereby still ensuring that all motor windings can be continuously powered on and work normally, and further enabling all propulsion components to work normally and avoiding the occurrence of performance degradation. And after the propulsion component 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 in the discharge rate can be avoided, and the safety of the aircraft can also be improved.

[0110] In addition, compared with the prior art where the battery module independently bears a high discharge rate and high instantaneous response, which poses a safety hazard, in the vertical take-off and landing aircraft proposed by the present invention, 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. Since the capacity is larger after multiple battery modules are connected, the tolerance for instantaneous response is greater, so the overall safety of the aircraft can be guaranteed.

[0111] The above are only partial embodiments of the present application, and thus do not limit the protection scope of the present application. Any equivalent structural transformation made under the technical concept of the present application by using the content of the specification and drawings of the present application, or any direct / indirect application in other related technical fields is included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method, characterized in that, Including: Determine whether the state of the power plant of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft is abnormal; the power plant includes at least two propulsion components, at least two battery modules, and a power distribution module, and the power distribution module is connected to each of the battery modules and is connected to the propulsion components; When it is determined that the state of the power plant is abnormal, control the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state; wherein, the power distribution module is configured with a multi-independent bus state and a common bus state. When the power distribution module is in the multi-independent bus state, the power distribution module has a plurality of independent buses, and the number of the independent buses is the same as the number of the battery modules and corresponds to each other one by one. Each of the battery modules is connected to at least a part of all the propulsion components through the corresponding independent bus to supply power. When 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 is connected in parallel to the input side of the common bus, and at least a part of the propulsion components is connected to the output side of the common bus.

2. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to claim 1, characterized in that The determination of whether the state of the power plant of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft is abnormal includes: When it is determined that any one of the propulsion components fails, determine that the state of the power plant is abnormal.

3. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to claim 2, wherein, The control of the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state includes: Control at least a part of the switch units of the power distribution module to conduct, so that the power distribution module switches from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state; wherein, the power distribution module further includes at least two of the switch units, and the number of the switch units is the same as the number of the independent buses and corresponds to each other one by one. All the independent buses are connected in a switchable manner through at least two of the switch units. When all the switch units are disconnected, the power distribution module is in the multi-independent bus state, and when at least a part of the switch units conduct, the independent buses corresponding to the at least a part of the switch units are reconnected to form a common bus, so that the power distribution module switches to the common bus state; or Control at least a part of the switch units of all the power distribution modules to conduct, so that at least a part of the power distribution modules switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state; wherein, the power plant includes at least two of the power distribution modules and at least two switch units, and 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 are connected in a switchable manner through at least two switch units. When all the switch units are disconnected, all the power distribution modules are in the multi-independent bus state. When at least a part of the switch units conduct, the common buses of at least a part of the power distribution modules are reconnected to form a whole-machine common bus.

4. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to claim 3, wherein The control of the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state includes: Synchronously control each of the switch units to conduct, so that the power distribution module switches from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state.

5. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to any one of claims 2 to 4, characterized in that The control of the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state includes: Control the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state, and perform the power redistribution operation of the propulsion components; the power redistribution operation of the propulsion components at least includes: shutting down or adjusting the output power of the propulsion components with abnormal states and the symmetric propulsion components of the propulsion components with abnormal states, and / or adjusting the output power of the remaining propulsion components to obtain the desired pulling force or thrust or lift; In the case where the power distribution module switches from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state, control each of the propulsion components to output according to the allocated power.

6. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The determination of whether the state of the power plant of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft is abnormal includes: In the case where it is determined that any one of the battery modules has abnormal power supply, determine that the state of the power plant is abnormal; The control of the power distribution module to switch from the multi-independent bus state to the common bus state includes: Control the switch units corresponding to each of the remaining independent buses except the abnormal independent bus to be turned on; the abnormal independent bus is the independent bus corresponding to the battery module with abnormal power supply; In the case where the switch units corresponding to each of the remaining independent buses are turned on, control the switch unit corresponding to the abnormal independent bus to be turned on.

7. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to claim 6, wherein The control of the switch unit corresponding to the abnormal independent bus to be turned on includes: Detect whether the abnormal independent bus has a grid connection risk fault; In the case where the abnormal independent bus does not have the grid connection risk fault, control the switch unit corresponding to the abnormal independent bus to be turned on.

8. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to claim 7, wherein The detection of whether the abnormal independent bus has a grid connection risk fault includes: Detect whether each safety protection module on the line where the abnormal independent bus is located is in a normal state; In the case where all the safety protection modules are in a normal state, determine that the abnormal independent bus has not had a grid connection risk fault; In the case where at least one of the safety protection modules is in an abnormal state, determine that the abnormal independent bus has a grid connection risk fault.

9. A vertical takeoff and landing aircraft, characterized in that, Includes: A power plant, the power plant includes at least two propulsion components, at least two battery modules and a power distribution module, the power distribution module is connected to each of the battery modules and connected to the propulsion components, and 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 independent buses is the same as the number of battery modules and they correspond to each other one by one. Each battery module is connected to at least part of all the propulsion components through the corresponding independent bus to supply power. 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 propulsion components are connected to the output side of the common bus; And A control module, the control module includes a memory, a processor, and a computer program stored on the memory and executable on the processor, the computer program being configured to implement the steps of the vertical takeoff and landing aircraft control method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. The vertical takeoff and landing aircraft according to claim 9, characterized in that, Each of the propulsion assemblies includes at least two motor windings; Wherein, each of the independent buses of the power distribution module is respectively connected to one of the motor windings, and different motor windings in each of the propulsion assemblies are connected to different independent buses.

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