Mooring unmanned aerial vehicle parking system with leveling and centering functions

Abstract

The mooring unmanned aerial vehicle parking system with the leveling and centering functions comprises a case and an automatic lifting device, the automatic lifting device is arranged in the case and comprises a lifting leveling mechanism and a centering mechanism, a parking platform is arranged at the upper end of the lifting leveling mechanism, and the centering mechanism is arranged on the parking platform; the control system comprises a ground controller and an airborne controller, the airborne controller is electrically connected with the ground controller through a photoelectric composite cable, and the ground controller is electrically connected with the automatic lifting device; the unmanned aerial vehicle is placed on the lifting leveling mechanism, the airborne controller is arranged in the unmanned aerial vehicle, and a camera is arranged on the lower side of the unmanned aerial vehicle and connected with the airborne controller; and the automatic take-up and pay-off device is arranged in the case and is in communication connection with the controller. The landing platform solves the problems that in the prior art, the levelness of the landing platform cannot be adjusted, and the landing platform is prone to colliding with other devices in the withdrawing process.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of tethered unmanned aerial vehicles, in particular to a tethered unmanned aerial vehicle parking system with a leveling and centering function. Background Art

[0002] The tethered UAV system is based on a multi-rotor UAV as a carrier. The UAV is powered uninterruptedly and controlled by the tethered optoelectronic composite cable on the cable retracting device, so as to achieve a UAV system that can stay in the air for a long time. By carrying different payloads such as communication payloads, optoelectronic payloads, and lighting equipment, it is widely used in emergency communications, relay communications, network coverage extension, border patrols, surveillance, information collection, public security prevention and control, control and search and rescue, fire monitoring, water law enforcement, event broadcasting, news reporting and other fields.

[0003] However, in the prior art, since the landing platform tilts with the locomotive body and its level cannot be adjusted, it is easy to cause a secondary bounce or even overturn when the drone lands. In addition, due to the size limitation of the vehicle body, the landing area of ​​each drone is very limited when performing drone swarm operations. In order to make the drone land accurately at the center of the landing platform, a safe landing cannot be guaranteed when the RTK is interfered with or the signal is unstable, and it is easy to occupy the landing space of other drones. Utility Model Content

[0004] In view of the deficiencies in the prior art, the utility model provides a tethered drone parking system with a leveling and centering function, which solves the problems in the prior art that the landing platform cannot be adjusted to a horizontal level and is difficult to accurately land at the center of the landing platform.

[0005] According to an embodiment of the utility model, a tethered drone parking system with a leveling and centering function comprises:

[0006] A chassis and an automatic lifting device, wherein the automatic lifting device is arranged inside the chassis, and the automatic lifting device comprises a lifting and leveling mechanism and a centering mechanism, wherein a parking platform is arranged at the upper end of the lifting and leveling mechanism, and the centering mechanism is arranged on the parking platform and is used to adjust the UAV placed on the parking platform to the center of the parking platform;

[0007] A control system, wherein the control system comprises a ground controller, and the ground controller is electrically connected to the automatic lifting device.

[0008] Preferably, the centering mechanism includes four limit frames, and four linear motors are cross-symmetrically arranged on the lower side of the parking platform. The four limit frames are slidably mounted on the parking platform and are fixedly connected to the output ends of the four linear motors respectively.

[0009] Preferably, the four limit frames include two first limit frames arranged transversely and two second limit frames arranged longitudinally, and pressure sensors are provided on opposite sides of the two first limit frames and opposite sides of the two second limit frames.

[0010] Preferably, an opening and closing mechanism is provided on the upper side of the chassis, and the opening and closing mechanism comprises two hatches, two bevel gears, a screw and a servo motor;

[0011] A nut and a plurality of guide rods are fixedly provided on the lower side of the two hatch covers, mounting strips are provided on the upper ends of the two opposite side walls inside the chassis, a plurality of linear guide rails are provided on the mounting strips, the guide rods are slidably provided on the linear guide rails, the two ends of the lead screw are rotatably provided on the two opposite side walls of the chassis respectively, and the thread directions of the left and right halves are opposite, the two nuts are respectively threadedly sleeved on the two ends of the lead screw, the servo motor is provided on one of the mounting strips, the two bevel gears are meshed with each other and are respectively fixedly sleeved on the output shaft and the lead screw of the servo motor.

[0012] Preferably, a proximity switch electrically connected to a ground controller is provided on the mounting bar, and contacts are symmetrically provided on the lower side of the hatch and are placed on both sides of the proximity switch.

[0013] Preferably, the lifting and leveling mechanism includes three groups of servo electric telescopic cylinders, the parking platform is provided with an electronic gyroscope electrically connected to the controller, and the upper and lower ends of each group of servo electric telescopic cylinders are respectively provided with a Hook's hinge and a directional hinge, the lower side of the directional hinge is fixedly connected to the inner bottom wall of the chassis, and the upper end of the Hook's hinge is fixedly connected to the lower side of the parking platform.

[0014] Preferably, a positioning mark is engraved on the middle part of the upper side of the parking platform.

[0015] Preferably, a through hole is opened in the middle of the parking platform.

[0016] Preferably, it also includes an automatic wire retractor, a ground power supply and an airborne power supply, the control system also includes an airborne controller, the parking platform is used to park the drone, the airborne controller is arranged inside the drone, and a camera is arranged on the lower side of the drone and connected to the airborne controller for identifying the position of the parking platform;

[0017] The airborne power supply is arranged on the UAV, the ground controller and the ground power supply are respectively connected to the airborne controller and the airborne power supply through a photoelectric composite cable, the ground controller is connected to the ground power supply, and the airborne controller is connected to the airborne power supply;

[0018] The automatic wire retractor is arranged in the chassis and is electrically connected to the ground controller, and the photoelectric composite cable is wound around the automatic wire retractor.

[0019] Compared with the prior art, the utility model has the following beneficial effects:

[0020] When it is necessary to release the drone, open the opening and closing mechanism, the lifting and leveling mechanism will raise the parking platform, and the drone will take off under the operation of the controller. When it is necessary to land, the ground controller controls the lifting and leveling mechanism to adjust the parking platform to a horizontal state to prevent the drone from bouncing back or tipping over due to the tilt of the parking platform during landing. Then the onboard controller identifies the position of the parking platform in three-dimensional space through the camera and the built-in image recognition program, and lands on the parking platform. After that, the controller controls the centering mechanism to push the drone to the center of the parking platform, so that it can land accurately in the center of the parking platform when RTK is interfered, ensuring that when the drone is operating in a swarm, it will not occupy the landing space of other drones. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0021] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of the chassis of an embodiment of the utility model when it is opened.

[0022] Figure 2 This is a diagram of the internal structure of the chassis of an embodiment of the present utility model.

[0023] Figure 3 It is a structural diagram of the lifting and leveling mechanism of an embodiment of the utility model.

[0024] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the lifting and leveling principle of an embodiment of the utility model.

[0025] Figure 5 It is a bottom view of the hatch cover according to an embodiment of the utility model.

[0026] Figure 6 It is a top view of the chassis of the embodiment of the utility model.

[0027] In the above drawings: hatch 1, first limit frame 2, second limit frame 3, UAV 4, parking platform 5, chassis 6, servo electric telescopic cylinder 7, ground controller 8, automatic retractor 9, ground power supply 10, Hook hinge 11, directional hinge 12, nut 13, contact 14, guide rod 15, proximity switch 16, linear guide 17, servo motor 18, screw 19. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] The technical solution of the present utility model is further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0029] like Figures 1 to 6 As shown, the embodiment of the utility model proposes a high-voltage direct-drive tethered UAV 4 system, and the entire UAV 4 system can be directly mounted on a locomotive, including:

[0030] The chassis 6 and the automatic lifting device, the automatic lifting device is arranged inside the chassis 6, the automatic lifting device includes a lifting and leveling mechanism and a centering mechanism, the parking platform 5 is arranged at the upper end of the lifting and leveling mechanism, and the centering mechanism is arranged on the parking platform 5, which is used to adjust the UAV 4 placed on the parking platform 5 to the center of the parking platform 5. A positioning mark is engraved on the middle part of the upper side of the parking platform 5, and a through hole is opened in the center.

[0031] The control system includes a ground controller 8 and an onboard controller. The onboard controller is electrically connected to the ground controller 8 via an optoelectronic composite cable. The ground controller 8 is electrically connected to the automatic lifting device for controlling the operation of the automatic lifting device.

[0032] UAV 4 is placed on the lifting and leveling mechanism, and the airborne controller is arranged inside the UAV 4 for controlling the flight of the UAV 4. In addition, a program for image recognition is installed in the airborne controller. A camera is arranged on the lower side of the UAV 4 and is connected to the airborne controller. The ground image is captured by the camera, and the airborne controller calls the image recognition program to process the ground image. The positioning mark is identified to identify the position of the parking platform 5 in the three-dimensional space. If the RTK is not interfered with in the environment, RTK positioning is used preferentially. In this embodiment, the method of using a camera to capture the ground picture and identify the positioning mark to locate the parking platform 5 is only used in the environment where the RTK positioning is interfered with. At the same time, the two positioning methods can also assist each other to improve the positioning accuracy.

[0033] The automatic retractor 9 is arranged in the chassis 6 and is electrically connected to the ground controller 8. The photoelectric composite cable is wound on the automatic retractor 9, and one end passes through the through hole. The automatic retractor 9 is mainly used for retracting and releasing the photoelectric composite cable.

[0034] The ground power supply 10 and the airborne power supply, the airborne power supply is arranged on the drone, the ground power supply 10 is connected to the airborne power supply through a converter and an optoelectronic composite cable in turn, the control system is connected to the ground power supply 10, all electronic components located on the ground are powered by the ground power supply 10, the airborne controller is connected to the airborne power supply, and all operations of the drone 4 are also powered by the airborne power supply;

[0035] The converter is an AD / DC power conversion module, which can convert AC220V alternating current into DC400V high-voltage direct current, and transmit it to the airborne power supply through an optoelectronic composite cable. At the same time, the airborne power supply does not use any converter, but directly uses high-voltage direct drive to reduce the loss on the cable. The higher the voltage, the smaller the loss. By using high-voltage direct drive to supply power, there is no need to carry a DC / DC power conversion module on the drone 4, which can reduce electromagnetic interference and effectively improve the electromagnetic compatibility of the drone 4 system and the payload carrying capacity of the drone 4.

[0036] When the mission needs to be launched, the operator confirms the surrounding environment, and if the environment permits, turns on the ground power supply 10 and the onboard power supply. The controller controls the hatch 1 to open automatically, and controls the lifting and leveling mechanism to lift and level before releasing the drone 4. The flight altitude is set for one-key takeoff, realizing one-key takeoff and automatic startup of the mission system. After completing the mission, the operator confirms the recovery of the drone 4, and the drone 4 safely lands on the parking platform 5, which is automatically recovered.

[0037] Among them, an opening and closing mechanism is provided on the upper side of the chassis 6, and the opening and closing mechanism includes two hatches 1, two bevel gears, a screw rod 19 and a servo motor 18;

[0038] A nut 13 and a plurality of guide rods 15 are fixedly provided on the lower side of the two hatches 1, mounting strips are provided on the upper ends of the two opposite side walls inside the chassis 6, a plurality of linear guide rails 17 are provided on the mounting strips, the guide rods 15 are slidably provided on the linear guide rails 17, the two ends of the lead screw 19 are rotatably provided on the two opposite side walls of the chassis 6 respectively, and the thread directions of the left and right halves are opposite, the two nuts 13 are respectively threadedly sleeved on the two ends of the lead screw, the servo motor 18 is provided on one of the mounting strips, the two bevel gears are meshed with each other and are respectively fixedly sleeved on the output shaft and the lead screw of the servo motor 18.

[0039] When opening or closing the hatch cover 1, the ground controller 8 controls the servo motor 18 to rotate, and drives the screw 19 to rotate through the transmission of two bevel gears. Since the threads on the left and right sides of the screw 19 are in opposite directions, the two hatch covers 1 can be driven to move linearly in opposite directions at the same time under the guidance of the linear guide rail 17, thereby realizing the function of opening and closing the chassis 6. The entire opening and closing mechanism is driven by a single servo motor 18 and has a compact structure.

[0040] In addition, a proximity switch 16 electrically connected to the servo motor 18 is disposed on the mounting bar, and contacts 14 are symmetrically disposed on the lower side of the hatch cover 1 and are placed on both sides of the proximity switch 16 .

[0041] The proximity switch 16 uses an inductive proximity sensor as a limit switch. This device is a position sensor with a switch signal output. When the hatch cover 1 is opened or closed, one of the contacts 14 is away from the proximity switch 16, and the other contact 14 is close to the proximity switch 16. When the contact 14 contacts the proximity switch 16, the electrical signal will automatically change and the change information will be sent to the ground controller 8 in real time. The ground controller 8 immediately controls the servo motor 18 to stop working and stop the hatch cover 1 from moving, thereby realizing the limiting effect on the hatch cover 1 and avoiding excessive displacement of the two hatch covers 1.

[0042] The lifting and leveling mechanism includes three groups of servo electric telescopic cylinders 7. The parking platform 5 is provided with an electronic gyroscope electrically connected to the controller. The upper and lower ends of each group of servo electric telescopic cylinders 7 are respectively provided with a Hook's hinge 11 and a directional hinge 12. The lower side of the directional hinge 12 is fixedly connected to the inner bottom wall of the chassis 6, and the upper end of the Hook's hinge 11 is fixedly connected to the lower side of the parking platform 5.

[0043] The principle of the entire lifting and leveling mechanism is as follows Figure 4 As shown, the servo electric telescopic cylinder 7 corresponds to the moving pair, the Hooke's hinge 11 and the directional hinge 12 at the upper and lower ends correspond to the ball joint and the rotating pair respectively, the Hooke's hinge 11 can realize all-round free rotation, and the directional hinge 12 can realize directional rotation.

[0044] The parking platform 5 corresponds to the moving platform, and finally the entire lifting and leveling mechanism constitutes a three-degree-of-freedom leveling scheme, whose three degrees of freedom include rolling, pitching and z-axis lifting and lowering. The three groups of servo electric telescopic cylinders 7 are electrically connected to the ground controller 8. The ground controller 8 adjusts the telescopic length of the servo electric telescopic cylinder 7 according to the deflection information of the electronic gyroscope. The lifting stroke is 1m, and the leveling range reaches 15°. When the UAV 4 is landing, the parking platform 5 is in a horizontal state to avoid the parking platform 5 from tilting due to the tilt of the locomotive body, which causes the UAV 4 to bounce up or overturn for the second time.

[0045] The centering mechanism includes four limit frames. Four linear motors are cross-symmetrically arranged on the lower side of the parking platform 5. The four limit frames are slidably mounted on the parking platform 5 and are respectively fixedly connected to the output ends of the four linear motors. The four limit frames include two transversely arranged first limit frames 2 and two longitudinally arranged second limit frames 3. Pressure sensors are provided on the opposite sides of the two first limit frames 2 and the opposite sides of the two second limit frames 3.

[0046] Due to system and hardware errors, the drone 4 may not land in the center of the parking platform 5. At this time, after the controller knows that the drone 4 has landed on the parking platform 5, it will control the four linear motors to operate, push the two first limit frames 2 or the two second limit frames 3 to approach each other, and push the drone 4 to move. When the pressure sensors on the two first limit frames 2 or the two second limit frames 3 are all under pressure, it means that the drone 4 is already in the center position in the longitudinal or transverse direction. When the four pressure sensors are all under pressure, it means that the drone 4 is already in the center of the parking platform 5, achieving the effect of centering the drone 4. At the same time, the four limit frames can also clamp and fix the drone 4 to prevent the drone 4 from tipping over due to the shaking of the chassis. At the same time, it can also ensure that when the drone 4 is operating in a swarm, it will not occupy the landing space of other drones 4.

[0047] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solution of the utility model rather than to limit it. Although the utility model has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments, ordinary technicians in the field should understand that the technical solution of the utility model can be modified or replaced by equivalents without departing from the purpose and scope of the technical solution of the utility model, which should be included in the scope of the claims of the utility model.

Claims

1. A tethered drone parking system with a leveling and centering function, characterized in that: include: A chassis and an automatic lifting device, wherein the automatic lifting device is arranged inside the chassis, and the automatic lifting device comprises a lifting and leveling mechanism and a centering mechanism, wherein a parking platform is arranged at the upper end of the lifting and leveling mechanism, and the centering mechanism is arranged on the parking platform and is used to adjust the UAV placed on the parking platform to the center of the parking platform; A control system, wherein the control system comprises a ground controller, and the ground controller is electrically connected to the automatic lifting device.

2. A tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The centering mechanism includes four limit frames. Four linear motors are cross-symmetrically arranged on the lower side of the parking platform. The four limit frames are slidably mounted on the parking platform and are fixedly connected to the output ends of the four linear motors respectively.

3. A tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 2, characterized in that: The four limit frames include two first limit frames arranged transversely and two second limit frames arranged longitudinally. Pressure sensors are arranged on opposite sides of the two first limit frames and opposite sides of the two second limit frames.

4. A tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: An opening and closing mechanism is provided on the upper side of the chassis, and the opening and closing mechanism includes two hatches, two bevel gears, a screw and a servo motor; A nut and a plurality of guide rods are fixedly provided on the lower side of the two hatch covers, mounting strips are provided on the upper ends of the two opposite side walls inside the chassis, a plurality of linear guide rails are provided on the mounting strips, the guide rods are slidably provided on the linear guide rails, the two ends of the lead screw are rotatably provided on the two opposite side walls of the chassis respectively, and the thread directions of the left and right halves are opposite, the two nuts are respectively threadedly sleeved on the two ends of the lead screw, the servo motor is provided on one of the mounting strips, the two bevel gears are meshed with each other and are respectively fixedly sleeved on the output shaft and the lead screw of the servo motor.

5. A tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that: The mounting bar is provided with a proximity switch electrically connected to a ground controller, and contacts are symmetrically provided on the lower side of the hatch and are placed on both sides of the proximity switch.

6. A tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: The lifting and leveling mechanism includes three groups of servo electric telescopic cylinders. The parking platform is provided with an electronic gyroscope electrically connected to the controller. The upper and lower ends of each group of servo electric telescopic cylinders are respectively provided with a Hook's hinge and a directional hinge. The lower side of the directional hinge is fixedly connected to the inner bottom wall of the chassis, and the upper end of the Hook's hinge is fixedly connected to the lower side of the parking platform.

7. A tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: A positioning mark is engraved on the middle part of the upper side of the parking platform.

8. The tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that: A through hole is provided in the middle of the parking platform.

9. A tethered drone parking system with leveling and centering function as claimed in claim 8, characterized in that: It also includes an automatic wire retractor, a ground power supply and an airborne power supply. The control system also includes an airborne controller. The parking platform is used to park the drone. The airborne controller is arranged inside the drone. A camera is arranged on the lower side of the drone and is connected to the airborne controller for identifying the position of the parking platform. The airborne power supply is arranged on the UAV, the ground controller and the ground power supply are respectively connected to the airborne controller and the airborne power supply through a photoelectric composite cable, the ground controller is connected to the ground power supply, and the airborne controller is connected to the airborne power supply; The automatic wire retractor is arranged in the chassis and is electrically connected to the ground controller, and the photoelectric composite cable is wound around the automatic wire retractor.

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