Multi-layer combined unmanned aerial vehicle and control method

Abstract

The invention discloses a multi-layer combined unmanned aerial vehicle and a control method, and relates to the field of high-altitude long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicles, the multi-layer combined unmanned aerial vehicle comprises a plurality of sub-aircrafts, each sub-aircraft comprises a fuselage, an empennage, wings, wingtips and protrusions, the wingtips are arranged at the ends, away from the fuselage, of the left and right wings, and the wingtips can be in butt joint with the wingtips of the other aircraft; protrusions are arranged on the upper surface and the lower surface of each wing, the end faces of the protrusions can be in butt joint with the end faces of the protrusions of another airplane, and the protrusions can be used for containing an aircraft undercarriage at the same time. Through aggregation and recombination of a plurality of small unmanned aerial vehicles, a multi-layer combined unmanned aerial vehicle with a high aspect ratio is formed, and the combined unmanned aerial vehicle can effectively overcome the defect that the rigidity of wings of a traditional unmanned aerial vehicle with a high aspect ratio is insufficient and can carry an oversized radar conformal antenna with long wave bands such as meter waves and the like. And long-time air-hang detection of high-value targets such as stealth aircrafts and the like is realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to a multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), particularly suitable for high-altitude long-endurance UAVs, anti-stealth UAVs, or reconnaissance and detection UAVs. Background Technology

[0002] High aspect ratio, long endurance unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) play a vital role in numerous fields, including reconnaissance and surveillance, and ground and sea observation. In recent years, the development of conformal antenna technology has further expanded the applications of high aspect ratio, long endurance UAVs. By conformally designing the radar antenna to the carrier platform, and placing the radar antenna beneath the wings and fuselage skin, the space of the high aspect ratio aircraft's wings can be fully utilized to achieve a super-large radar array area, thereby improving radar detection efficiency.

[0003] Meanwhile, since the size of a radar antenna is positively correlated with its wavelength, the deployment of radar antennas with longer wavelengths, such as meter waves, can also be achieved by using high aspect ratio wing conformal antenna technology. This allows for the use of meter wave anti-stealth characteristics to detect high-value targets such as stealth aircraft.

[0004] However, there are still two major problems to be solved in the application of conformal antenna technology on high aspect ratio UAVs. First, the wings of high aspect ratio UAVs have poor stiffness and face prominent aeroelasticity problems during flight. When the radar is working, the relative positions between each transmitting and receiving unit must be kept at a fixed height. Otherwise, accurate signal synthesis and reception processing cannot be achieved. Therefore, the rigidity of the wings must be increased at a very high cost, which seriously limits the application of conformal antennas. Second, the horizontal length of the wings is very long but the height is very limited. This results in a large number of transmitting units in the horizontal direction and a small number of transmitting units in the vertical direction of the conformal antenna, resulting in poor resolution in the height direction. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The technical problem solved by this application is to overcome the shortcomings of the prior art and provide a multi-layer combined UAV and control method. By aggregating and recombining several small UAVs, a multi-layer high aspect ratio combined UAV is formed. This combined UAV can effectively overcome the defect of insufficient wing stiffness of traditional high aspect ratio UAVs and can be equipped with ultra-large conformal radar antennas for longer wavebands such as meter waves, so as to achieve long-term loiter detection of high-value targets such as stealth aircraft.

[0006] The technical solution provided in this application is as follows:

[0007] A multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) includes multiple sub-aircraft. Each sub-aircraft includes a fuselage, wings, wingtips, and protrusions. A wing is connected to each of the left and right sides of the fuselage. The wingtips are located at the ends of the wings away from the fuselage and are used to dock with the wingtips of other sub-aircraft. Protrusions are provided on both the upper and lower surfaces of the wings, and the end faces of the protrusions are used to dock with the end faces of the protrusions of other sub-aircraft.

[0008] Furthermore, the multiple sub-aircraft form a multi-layer structure, with each layer including at least two sub-aircraft. Adjacent sub-aircraft in the same layer are connected by wingtip docking, and adjacent sub-aircraft in adjacent layers are connected by protrusion docking.

[0009] Furthermore, the wingtip, at the end furthest from the fuselage, and the protruding end face are both provided with docking mechanisms, which are used for docking connections between adjacent sub-aircraft.

[0010] Furthermore, a first mounting slot is provided on the side of the wing facing the tail of the fuselage, and an aileron is rotatably connected in the first mounting slot. A tail rudder is rotatably connected in a second mounting slot on the side of the tail wing facing away from the nose of the fuselage. A control surface is rotatably connected in a third mounting slot on the side of the protrusion facing the tail of the fuselage.

[0011] Furthermore, the protrusion is a column perpendicular to the wing surface, and the cross-section of the column is airfoil-shaped.

[0012] A control method for a multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) includes:

[0013] The combined drone system comprises at least two layers and at least two rows of sub-aircraft.

[0014] Control the deflection of the ailerons of the uppermost or lowermost sub-aircraft and control the deflection of the tail rudder to control the pitch motion of the combined UAV.

[0015] At least one row of sub-aircraft deflection surfaces on the left or right side (from the perspective of looking forward along the central axis of the aircraft tail) and in coordination with the tail rudder deflection of the sub-aircraft to control the yaw motion of the combined UAV.

[0016] The ailerons of at least one column of sub-aircraft on the left and at least one column of sub-aircraft on the right deflect in opposite directions to control the roll motion of the combined UAV.

[0017] Furthermore, when it is necessary to control the combined UAV to pitch upward (raise its head), the uppermost sub-aircraft should be controlled to deflect its ailerons and its tail rudder should be deflected upward; when it is necessary to control the combined UAV to pitch downward (lower its head), the lowermost sub-aircraft should simultaneously deflect its ailerons and its tail rudder should be deflected downward.

[0018] When the combined UAV needs to yaw to the left, control the control surfaces and tail rudder of the left sub-aircraft to yaw to the left; when the combined UAV needs to yaw to the right, control the control surfaces and tail rudder of the right sub-aircraft to yaw to the right.

[0019] When the combined UAV needs to be controlled to roll to the left, control the left sub-aircraft's aileron to deflect upwards and control the right sub-aircraft's aileron to deflect downwards; when the combined UAV needs to be controlled to roll to the right, control the right sub-aircraft's aileron to deflect upwards and control the left sub-aircraft's aileron to deflect downwards.

[0020] In summary, this application includes at least the following beneficial technical effects:

[0021] (1) This invention proposes a new combined aircraft scheme, which has a multi-layer structure similar to a truss, and can realize the installation of ultra-large radar antenna arrays, especially large-size anti-stealth antennas such as meter-wave.

[0022] (2) The combined aircraft has greatly enhanced the bending resistance of the wings through a multi-layer structure, overcoming the problem that traditional wings are too elastic and difficult to adapt to conformal antennas.

[0023] (3) The aircraft is a modular structure. Different numbers of sub-aircraft can be spliced ​​together as needed and flexibly reassembled into combined aircraft with different wingspans and layers, thereby achieving different functions by carrying different loads. Attached Figure Description

[0024] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a sub-aircraft;

[0025] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a combined aircraft.

[0026] Figure 3 For the assembly and docking process;

[0027] Figure 4 The sub-aircraft can be flexibly recombined into combined aircraft with different layers and quantities.

[0028] Figure 5 A schematic diagram illustrating how the aileron deflection of a sub-aircraft controls the pitch motion of the aircraft.

[0029] Figure 6 A schematic diagram illustrating the control of the yaw motion of a sub-aircraft by deflecting its control surfaces.

[0030] Figure 7 A schematic diagram illustrating how the aileron deflection of a sub-aircraft controls the roll motion of the aircraft.

[0031] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached diagram: 1-fuselage; 2-tail; 3-wing; 4-wingtip; 5-protrusion; 6-aileron; 7-tail rudder; 8-protruding control surface. Detailed Implementation

[0032] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the embodiments disclosed in this application will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0033] This application discloses a multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle, such as... Figure 1 As shown, the UAV can be disassembled into several sub-aircraft. Each sub-aircraft includes a fuselage 1, a tail 2, wings 3, wingtips 4, and protrusions 5. Both wings 3 have wingtips 4 at their ends furthest from the fuselage 1, which can dock with the wingtips 4 of another sub-aircraft. Protrusions 5 are provided on both the upper and lower surfaces of the wings 3, and the end faces of the protrusions 5 can dock with the end faces of the protrusions 5 of another sub-aircraft. These protrusions can also accommodate the landing gear. Ailerons 6 are mounted at the rear of the wings 3, and a tail rudder 7 is mounted at the rear of the tail 2. Control surfaces 8 are arranged at the rear of the protrusions 5. Specifically, a first mounting slot is provided on the side of the wing 3 facing the tail of the fuselage 1. The aileron 6 is rotatably connected to the first mounting slot, and the axis of rotation of the aileron 6 is along the length of the wing 3, so that the aileron 6 can protrude from the upper or lower surface of the wing 3 when deflected. The tail rudder 7 is rotatably mounted in a second mounting slot on the tail 2 away from the nose of the fuselage 1. The control surface 8 is rotatably mounted in the third mounting slot on the side of the protrusion 5 facing the tail of the fuselage 1, and the axis of rotation of the control surface 8 is along the height direction of the protrusion 5.

[0034] like Figure 2 As shown, the sub-aircraft can be aggregated into a multi-layered combined UAV. Each layer of the aircraft includes multiple sub-aircraft, which are docked with each other via wingtip docking mechanisms. Layers are docked with each other via protrusions on the wings and docking mechanisms. The protrusion 5 is shaped like a wing (i.e., protrusion 5 is a column perpendicular to the surface of wing 3, with an airfoil-shaped cross-section), which reduces drag and acts as a horizontal stabilizer. The control surface 8 installed at the rear of the protrusion can control the yaw of the aircraft and assist in heading control. In addition, protrusion 5 can suppress spanwise flow of the wing, reduce wingtip vortices, and reduce aerodynamic interference caused by wingtip vortices during sub-aircraft docking. Electrical and mechanical interfaces are arranged inside protrusion 5. Sub-aircraft in adjacent layers are structurally connected via mechanical interfaces and electrically connected via electrical interfaces. The docking between sub-aircraft can use various forms such as mechanical claws, electromagnets, and locking pins.

[0035] In this combined aircraft, the wing 3 and the protrusions 5 on the wing 3 form a multi-layered structure similar to a truss. Compared with a general wing, the bending stiffness of this multi-layered structure is significantly enhanced. At the same time, ultra-large conformal antennas such as meter-wave antennas can be installed inside, thereby increasing the antenna aperture and enabling the detection of targets such as stealth aircraft.

[0036] Figure 3 The process of assembling sub-aircraft into a composite UAV is further demonstrated. The sub-aircraft are first divided into several groups, and each group of sub-aircraft is sequentially docked and combined into a single-layer high aspect ratio UAV through the docking mechanism at the wingtip 3. Subsequently, these single-layer high aspect ratio UAVs are sequentially docked into a multi-layer composite aircraft through the protrusion 5 on the dorsal side of the wing and the docking mechanism.

[0037] Furthermore, this aircraft features a fully modular structure, allowing different numbers of sub-aircraft to be assembled and flexibly recombine into combined aircraft with varying wingspans and number of layers, such as 2x2, 2x3, 3x3, and 4x3 configurations. Figure 4 As shown.

[0038] In standalone flight mode, the aircraft is controlled in the same way as a conventional aircraft, with ailerons 6 controlling wing roll and tail fins 2 controlling pitch and yaw. In multi-layered flight mode, the aircraft's attitude is controlled differentially between the control surfaces of different sub-aircraft. Specifically, the deflection of ailerons 6 generates additional drag. When the uppermost sub-aircraft simultaneously deflects its ailerons 6, the additional drag generated by the control surface deflection produces a pitching moment, driving the aircraft to pitch up. Figure 5 As shown; when the lowest-level sub-aircraft simultaneously deflects its aileron 6, the effect is reversed. The additional drag generated by the deflection of the control surfaces will produce a pitching moment, driving the aircraft to pitch down. Based on this, combined with the pitching moment generated by the tail rudder 7 and the pitching moment generated by the differential motion of the engines of the upper and lower sub-aircraft, the pitch motion of the aircraft can be controlled. When the left sub-aircraft simultaneously deflects its control surface 8 and tail rudder 7 to the left, the lateral force and additional drag generated by the control surface deflection produce a yaw moment to the left. When the right sub-aircraft simultaneously deflects its control surface 8 and tail rudder 7 to the right, the additional drag generated by the control surface deflection will produce a yaw moment to the right, thus controlling the yaw motion of the aircraft, as shown. Figure 6 As shown. When the aileron 6 of the left sub-aircraft and the aileron 6 of the right sub-aircraft deflect in opposite directions, the resulting rolling torque can control the rolling motion of the aircraft, such as... Figure 7 As shown.

[0039] In addition, when the combined aircraft needs to perform large-scale maneuvers, it can first be decomposed into smaller combined or individual aircraft, which can then perform maneuvers separately and reassemble into the original combined form.

[0040] This modular drone can take off and land independently in separate units or be launched via rockets, and then reassemble in the air to form a multi-layered, high-aspect-ratio modular drone, equipped with a large-size radar antenna array.

[0041] The contents not described in detail in this application specification are common knowledge to those skilled in the art.

[0042] The present application has been described in detail above with reference to specific embodiments and exemplary examples; however, these descriptions should not be construed as limiting the present application. Those skilled in the art will understand that various equivalent substitutions, modifications, or improvements can be made to the technical solutions and implementation methods of the present application without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application, and all such modifications and improvements fall within the scope of the present application. The scope of protection of the present application is determined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle, characterized in that: It includes multiple sub-aircraft, each of which includes a fuselage (1), a wing (3), a wingtip (4) and a protrusion (5). The fuselage (1) is connected to a wing (3) on its left and right sides respectively. The wing (3) is provided with a wingtip (4) at the end away from the fuselage (1). The wingtip (4) is used to dock with the wingtip (4) of another sub-aircraft. The upper and lower surfaces of the wing (3) are provided with protrusions (5). The end face of the protrusion (5) is used to dock with the end face of the protrusion (5) of another sub-aircraft.

2. The multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The multiple sub-aircraft form a multi-layer structure, each layer including at least two sub-aircraft. Adjacent sub-aircraft in the same layer are connected by docking at wingtips (4), and adjacent sub-aircraft in adjacent layers are connected by docking at protrusions (5).

3. The multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The wingtip (4) is provided with a docking mechanism at the end away from the fuselage (1) and at the end face of the protrusion (5). The docking mechanism is used for docking connection between adjacent sub-aircraft.

4. The multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The wing (3) is provided with a first mounting slot on the side facing the tail of the fuselage (1), and an aileron (6) is rotatably connected in the first mounting slot. The tail of the fuselage (1) is connected to the tail wing (2). The tail wing (2) is provided with a second mounting slot on the side facing away from the head of the fuselage (1), and a tail rudder (7) is rotatably connected in the third mounting slot on the side facing the tail of the fuselage (1). The protrusion (5) is provided with a third mounting slot on the side facing the tail of the fuselage (1), and a control surface (8) is rotatably connected.

5. A multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that: The protrusion (5) is a column perpendicular to the surface of the wing (3), and the cross-section of the column is airfoil-shaped.

6. The control method for a multi-layered combined unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that, include: The combined drone system comprises at least two layers and at least two rows of sub-aircraft. Control the deflection of the aileron (6) of the uppermost or lowermost sub-aircraft and control the deflection of the tail rudder (7) to control the pitch motion of the combined UAV; At least one row of sub-aircraft deflection surfaces (8) on the left or right side, in conjunction with the tail rudder (7) of the sub-aircraft, deflect to control the yaw motion of the combined UAV. The ailerons (6) of at least one column of sub-aircraft on the left and the ailerons (6) of at least one column of sub-aircraft on the right deflect in opposite directions to control the roll motion of the combined UAV.

7. The control method according to claim 6, characterized in that: When it is necessary to control the combined UAV to pitch upward, control the uppermost sub-aircraft to deflect the aileron (6) and the tail rudder (7) upward; when it is necessary to control the combined UAV to pitch downward, the lowermost sub-aircraft to simultaneously deflect the aileron (6) and the tail rudder (7) downward. When the combined UAV needs to be controlled to yaw to the left, the control surfaces (8) and tail rudder (7) of the left sub-aircraft are controlled to yaw to the left; when the combined UAV needs to be controlled to yaw to the right, the control surfaces (8) and tail rudder (7) of the right sub-aircraft are controlled to yaw to the right. When the combined UAV needs to be controlled to roll to the left, the left sub-aircraft aileron (6) is controlled to deflect upward and the right sub-aircraft aileron (6) is controlled to deflect downward; when the combined UAV needs to be controlled to roll to the right, the right sub-aircraft aileron (6) is controlled to deflect upward and the left sub-aircraft aileron (6) is controlled to deflect downward.

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