Winch system

Abstract

To provide a winch system that can easily control a machine suspended by a cable and control the cable.SOLUTION: A winch system comprises an electric winch connected to a cable that suspends an aircraft body equipped with a thrust generating unit, a receiving unit that receives control signals from a control device, and a signal generating unit that generates a winch operation signal that instructs the operation of the electric winch based on the control signals received by the receiving unit. The control signals include information for instructing the aircraft to ascend or descend. The signal generating unit generates a winch operation signal including information on a winding instruction based on the ascending instruction, and generates a winch operation signal including information on a feeding instruction based on the descending instruction.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to winch systems. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, there has been known a method of inspecting the inside of a facility by suspending a camera from above with a cable, etc. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a device that suspends a camera from the top opening of a shaft to check the state of corrosion inside the shaft. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2016-223164 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Furthermore, if a drone equipped with a camera is suspended from a cable to inspect inside a facility, it would be difficult to control the drone and perform operations such as winding and unwinding the cable at the same time.

[0005] Therefore, the present disclosure has been made in consideration of the above problems, and its purpose is to provide a winch system that can easily control a machine suspended by a cable and control the cable. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] According to the present disclosure, an electric winch connected to a cable that suspends an airframe having a thrust generating unit; a receiving unit that receives a control signal from a control device; a signal generating unit that generates a winch operation signal that instructs operation of the electric winch based on the operation signal received by the receiving unit, the control signal includes information on an ascending instruction or a descending instruction for the aircraft, A winch system is provided, characterized in that the signal generating unit generates the winch operation signal including winding instruction information based on the raising instruction, and generates the winch operation signal including payout instruction information based on the lowering instruction. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present disclosure, a winch system can be provided that can easily control a machine suspended by a cable and control the cable. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a side view of a system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of the winch system according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing an example of the configuration of the machine body according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a configuration example of a deflection suppression device according to the embodiment; DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Preferred embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification and drawings, components having substantially the same functional configurations are designated by the same reference numerals, and redundant description will be omitted.

[0010] <Summary> FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an inspection system 1 (hereinafter also simply referred to as "system") according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The system 1 according to this embodiment can be used for a variety of tasks, such as various inspections and repairs of chimneys, various manufacturing furnaces, structures, equipment, piping, etc., or checking instruments in factories, etc. The target facility is not particularly limited, but can be a facility with an opening at the top. In the example of FIG. 1, an interior wall W can be photographed and inspected using a camera mounted on a machine body 10 suspended in an interior space A of the target facility.

[0011] As shown in Figure 1, the system 1 includes an aircraft 10, a cable 20 that suspends the aircraft 10 from above, an electric winch 30 that reels in and reels in the cable 20, and a control device 40 that controls the aircraft 10 and the electric winch 30.

[0012] The airframe 10 in this example is an unmanned aerial vehicle (drone) that can fly without being suspended by a cable 20 and can be controlled to any position and any attitude. The airframe 10 is capable of ascending (levitating), descending, hovering (stopping in mid-air), horizontal movement such as forward, backward, left, and right, and turning, using thrust obtained from the thrust generating unit 11. Note that, because the airframe 10 is supported by the cable 20, it is not necessary for it to obtain upward thrust from the thrust generating unit 11. The airframe 10 is not limited to this, and may have a structure that is unable to levitate under its own power.

[0013] The airframe 10 includes a thrust generating unit 11 and a main body 12 that supports the thrust generating unit 11. The main body has a frame as a support structure and a cover that protects electronic components provided on the frame. The frame that constitutes the main body is not particularly limited, but may be made of any one or a combination of materials, such as carbon fiber resin, glass fiber resin, magnesium, magnesium alloy, aluminum, aluminum alloy, steel, titanium, or other materials.

[0014] The thrust generating unit 11 includes, for example, multiple rotors, a motor for rotating the rotors, a battery for supplying power, and the like. Each rotor constituting the thrust generating unit can generate an upward thrust, and by changing the rotation direction of the rotor, a downward thrust can also be generated. The thrust generating unit can also generate thrust for translation (horizontal movement) in the front-rear and left-right directions. The thrust generating unit can also generate thrust in the turning direction. The thrust generating unit can also change the direction (attitude) and inclination of the aircraft. In this embodiment, the rotors are provided at four locations around the aircraft (one on each side of the front and rear), but the present invention is not limited to this example. For example, the rotors may be provided at six or eight locations around the aircraft. The number of rotors provided can be changed as appropriate depending on the structure, shape, equipment, size, etc. of the aircraft 1.

[0015] The frame of the airframe 10 supports components related to rotor control and power, such as a circuit board, flight controller, ESC (electric speed controller), sensors, and battery. A control circuit including a flight controller may be mounted on the frame. The battery supplies power to the motor, camera, and sensors, and the flight controller controls the motor's rotation speed and other parameters. The flight controller may have one or more processors 23b, such as a central processing unit (CPU) or a programmable processor such as an FPGA (field-programmable gate array). The flight controller has and can access memory. The memory stores logic, code, and / or program instructions that the flight controller can execute to perform one or more steps. The memory or other storage unit may include a separable medium such as an SD card or random access memory (RAM), or an external storage device. Data acquired from the camera / sensor may be directly transmitted to and stored in the memory. For example, still and video data captured by the camera may be recorded in an internal or external memory. The flight controller includes a control module configured to control the state of the airframe 10. For example, the control module controls the motors of the airframe 10 via the ESCs to adjust the spatial orientation, speed, and / or acceleration of the airframe 10, which has six degrees of freedom (translational motion x, y, and z, and rotational motion θx, θy, and θz). The sensors may include, for example, inertial sensors (inertial measurement units such as IMUs (Inertial Measurement Sensors)), acceleration sensors, gyro sensors, GPS sensors, wind sensors, temperature sensors, humidity sensors, barometric pressure sensors, altitude sensors, proximity sensors such as LiDARs (Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging), or vision / image sensors other than cameras. The sensors may be mounted on the flight controller or may be external to the flight controller. The camera may be any camera.For example, the camera may be an ordinary camera, an infrared camera, a stereo camera, etc. For example, the camera may include a camera for use in self-position estimation and a camera for capturing an image of a target.

[0016] The attitude of the airframe 10 may be controlled by a flight controller based on inputs obtained from appropriate sensors. Furthermore, the attitude control of the airframe 10 may be performed by adjusting the thrust obtained from the thrust generating unit 11, or by moving the cable 20 in the vertical or horizontal direction (front / back, left / right, or diagonal), or both. Specifically, when a target value is set so that the attitude of the airframe 10 relative to the horizontal direction is 0 degrees, the attitude feedback control may be performed by controlling the rotation speed of each rotor, or by controlling the horizontal or vertical movement of the cable 20. This makes it possible to suppress the horizontal movement of the airframe 10 and more reliably maintain the attitude even if the attitude of the airframe 10 tilts due to the influence of wind or drift. Note that the number of rotors that generate thrust is not particularly limited, but it is preferable that the number of rotors be four or more in order to further stabilize the attitude of the airframe 10. Furthermore, the thrust generating unit may be realized by a mechanism other than a rotor.

[0017] Furthermore, when rotating the airframe 10 along a horizontal plane (so-called rotation around a yaw axis perpendicular to the horizontal plane), this may be achieved by twisting the cable 20 or by controlling the rotation of the rotors. Controlling the rotation around the yaw axis using the rotors can be achieved, for example, by varying the rotation direction of each of the four rotors, thereby rotating the airframe 10 around the yaw axis. Specifically, the rotation direction of the two rotors on the right front and left rear (first rotors) can be set counterclockwise, and the rotation direction of the rotors on the left front and right rear (second rotors) can be set clockwise, and the rotation speeds of the first rotor and the second rotor can be controlled to be different, thereby rotating the airframe 10 around the yaw axis. Note that the rotation directions of the first rotor and the second rotor may be opposite to each other.

[0018] The aircraft 10 is equipped with one or more cameras, which can capture images of the surroundings of the aircraft 10 and acquire image data (including still images and video). The cameras may be installed in any orientation, such as up and down, front and back, left and right, of the aircraft 10, and their positions on the aircraft 10 are not particularly limited. For example, they may be installed on the front side of the aircraft 10, facing forward (with the camera facing forward).

[0019] The aircraft 10 has a communication unit for transmitting and receiving signals to the control device 40 and other external devices. The aircraft 10 can transmit data acquired by cameras, sensors, etc. to external devices including the control device 40 via the communication unit. The data acquired by the aircraft 10 may be stored in a memory unit provided in the aircraft 10, or may be transmitted to and stored in an external device. The communication unit can use any appropriate communication means, such as wired communication or wireless communication. The communication unit can use one or more of any communication methods, such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), infrared, wireless, WiFi, a point-to-point (P2P) network, a telecommunications network, or cloud communication.

[0020] The flight controller receives control signals from the control device 40 via the communication unit, and controls the thrust generating unit 11 based on the control signals, thereby controlling operations such as movement and rotation. The camera can also be operated in response to signals from the control device 40. Camera operation includes starting and stopping shooting, zooming, changing the camera orientation, etc. Various sensors and lights provided on the aircraft 10 can also be controlled based on control signals from the control device 40. The center of gravity of the aircraft 10 is preferably located approximately in the center of the aircraft 10 in a plan view, but is not limited to this.

[0021] As shown in Figure 3, a rotary joint 7 may be provided on cable 20. The rotary joint 7 is configured to be freely rotatable, and is configured so that rotation (twist) of cable 20 connected to one side of rotary joint 7 (for example, the lower side in Figure 3) is not transmitted to cable 20 connected to the other side of rotary joint 7 (for example, the upper side in Figure 3). With this configuration, even when the aircraft rotates around the yaw axis, for example, cable 20 does not twist, so it is not affected by reaction forces in the torsional direction, making it easier to control the aircraft. The position of rotary joint 7 is not particularly limited and can be provided at any position, but it is preferably provided in main section 50 near connection section 52.

[0022] 3, a weight 8 may be provided on the cable 20. By providing the weight 8, the airframe and the cable 20 are less susceptible to the effects of air currents, improving stability. Even if the weight 8 is provided, the airframe is supported by the cable 20, so there is almost no effect on the amount of battery power consumed when controlling the airframe. The weight 8 may be located above or below the rotary joint 7, or may be integral with the rotary joint 7. The position of the weight 8 is not particularly limited, and it may be provided at one or more positions on the main portion 20a of the cable 20, each branch portion 20b, or connection portion 20c, or on the airframe.

[0023] 3, the aircraft may be provided with a light 9 that emits light. The position and orientation of the light 9 are not particularly limited, but it is preferable that the light 9 be disposed so as to illuminate the shooting direction and shooting range of the camera 6. In the illustrated example, the light 9 is disposed so as to illuminate the front of the aircraft in correspondence with the camera 6 that shoots the view ahead of the aircraft. In the illustrated example, the light 9 is located above the camera 6, but it may be located below, on the left, or on the right side of the camera 6.

[0024] One end of cable 20 is connected to airframe 10, and the other end is connected to electric winch 30. Cable 20 suspends and supports airframe 10. Cable 20 may, for example, branch midway and be connected to the four corners of the upper part of main body 12 of airframe 10, or may be connected to the center of the main body without branching.

[0025] There are no particular limitations on the material that constitutes cable 20. Cable 20 may be made of, for example, fiber, metal, or hard plastic, and may be made of a different material in parts, or may have other rods, plates, or the like provided in parts.

[0026] The cable 20 may include a power cable capable of supplying power, a communication cable capable of transmitting and receiving signals, etc. (see reference numeral 21 in FIG. 3 ). This makes it possible to supply power to the machine body 10 from a power supply unit provided on the electric winch 30 side, transmit data such as control signals to the machine body 10, and conversely transmit various data such as image data from the machine body 10 to an information processing device provided on the electric winch 30 side.

[0027] The electric winch 30 constitutes a winch system S together with a communication unit (receiver) 31 that receives control signals from the control device 40 and a control unit (signal generator) 32 that generates winch operation signals that instruct the operation of the electric winch 30 based on the control signals received by the communication unit 31. The winch system S may also include other components such as a memory unit. The communication unit 31 may be capable of transmitting signals from the electric winch 30 to the control device 40, the aircraft 10, and other external devices, or may be configured to only receive signals without transmitting them. The control unit 32 generates winch operation signals based on the control signals from the control device 40 while referencing information pre-stored in a memory unit (not shown), and controls the motor that constitutes the electric winch 30. The winch operation signals include information such as the rotation direction, rotation speed, and rotation angle of the motor. Controlling the motor with the winch operation signal allows the cable 20 to be started, stopped, or the speed to be changed. The electric winch 30 includes a motor and a power supply unit for rotating the motor. The power supply unit may be, for example, an external power supply or a rechargeable battery, etc. The electric winch 30, electronic components, battery, etc. provided in the winch system S are preferably covered by a waterproof case, waterproof cover, etc.

[0028] The winch system S includes a support unit 33 that supports the electric winch 30 and a guide unit 34 that guides the cable 20. The support unit 33 includes a base unit 33a, such as a tripod that can be placed on the ground or the upper surface of a facility, a support unit 33b extending from the base unit 33a, and an arm unit 33c extending from the support unit 33b. The support unit 33b and the arm unit 33c are provided with one or more guide rollers as the guide unit 34. In this example, guide rollers are provided at the connection between the support unit 33b and the arm unit 33c and at the tip of the arm unit 33c. The base unit 33a, the support unit 33b, and the arm unit 33c may be foldable to make the entire system compact and portable. The support unit 33b and the arm unit 33c may each be extendable, rotatable, tiltable in any of the forward / backward, left / right, up / down directions, or bendable. This makes it possible to control the positions of the cable 20 and the airframe 10 in a plan view. The operations of the support unit 33b and the arm unit 33c may be controlled by the control unit 32 based on a control signal from the control device 40, or they may be manually extended, rotated, tilted, bent, etc. For example, by extending the arm unit 33c in the extension direction of the arm unit 33c, which extends horizontally, the position of the airframe 10 can be moved in the extension direction of the arm unit 33c. At that time, the electric winch 30 may be controlled to pay out the cable 20 so that the height of the airframe 10 does not change.

[0029] The support column 33b is provided with a connecting portion to which a wire, string, or the like can be connected to prevent the support column 33 from tipping over. The connecting portion may be, for example, ring-shaped, hook-shaped, or have another connecting structure. By extending the wire connected to the connecting portion on the opposite side from the arm column 33c and connecting it to the ground or another heavy object, it is possible to prevent the support column 33 from tipping over toward the arm column 33c due to the weight of the arm column 33c and the machine body 10. The connecting portion is preferably provided in a portion from the center to the upper portion of the support column 33b.

[0030] Here, if the cable 20 is bent when the electric winch 30 is winding the cable 20, the cable 20 may become tangled and irregularly wound around the electric winch 30. Therefore, in this example, as shown in FIG. 4, a deflection suppression device 35 is provided on the support column 33b to prevent the cable 20 from being bent when the electric winch 30 is winding the cable 20. The deflection suppression device 35 is located above the electric winch 30 and sandwiches the cable 20 between a first roller 35a and a second roller 35b, thereby maintaining tension in the cable 20 between the electric winch 30 and the deflection suppression device 35. This suppresses deflection of the cable 20 being wound around the electric winch 30 and prevents irregular winding. In this example, the first roller 35a is rotatably fixed to the first support portion 35c, and the second roller 35b is rotatably fixed to the second support portion 35d. The second support portion 35d is held so as to be swingable (rotatable) about a rotation axis 35e relative to the first support portion 35c, and is biased toward the first support portion 35c by a biasing member such as a spring. By opening the second support portion 35d in a direction away from the first support portion 35c, the cable 20 can be sandwiched between the first roller 35a and the second roller 35b or removed. It is preferable that an anti-slip portion made of rubber, elastomer, or the like is provided on the outer surface of at least one of the first roller 35a and the second roller 35b.

[0031] The length of the cable 20 can be adjusted by winding and unwinding the electric winch 30. The airframe 10 moves up and down depending on the length (unwinding amount) of the cable 20, which makes it possible to change, for example, the shooting height of the camera. The installation location of the electric winch 30 is not particularly limited, and it may be inside or outside the flight environment. Also, for example, by installing guide rollers above the airframe 10 to support the cable 20, the electric winch 30 can be placed below the airframe. For example, the electric winch 30 may be located on the ground outside or inside the facility to be inspected.

[0032] The electric winch 30 performs control of winding, unwinding, etc. based on input from the control device 40, but may also be partially controlled autonomously according to a program or the like.

[0033] The control signal from the control device 40 includes, for example, information instructing the airframe 10 to ascend or descend. The signal generating unit 32 generates a winch operation signal including information instructing it to reel in based on an ascending instruction, and generates a winch operation signal including information instructing it to pay out based on a descending instruction. This allows the electric winch 30 to automatically reel in the cable 20 and raise the airframe 10 simply by the operator instructing it to ascend by, for example, tilting the control stick provided on the control device 40 to one side or sliding an operation icon displayed on a touch panel to one side. Similarly, the electric winch 30 can automatically pay out the cable 20 and lower the airframe 10 simply by the operator manually operating the control device 40 to instruct it to descend.

[0034] The control device 40 transmits control signals to control the thrust generating unit 11 of the aircraft 10, and can be, for example, a transmitter / receiver (radio transmitter) for controlling a conventional unmanned aerial vehicle, or an information processing device such as a smartphone or tablet terminal, but is not limited to these.

[0035] The control device 40 can control the operation of the thrust generating unit 11 and the electric winch 30 of the airframe 10. The control device 40 can transmit control signals (control instruction information) to a communication unit provided in the airframe 10 and to a receiving unit 31 connected to the electric winch 30. The control signals include information that instructs the airframe 10 to ascend, descend, stop, move horizontally forward, backward, left, right, and diagonally, turn left and right, etc. In other words, the control signals can include information to control the orientation of the airframe 10 and information to control the parallel position (horizontal position) of the airframe 10.

[0036] The control device 40 can also transmit signals to control the cameras, sensors, etc. installed on the aircraft 10, such as control instruction signals to start and stop shooting, operate the zoom, change the camera orientation, control various sensors installed on the aircraft 10, and turn lights on and off.

[0037] The control device 40 has an input unit that accepts manual operation by a user (operator). The input unit may be, for example, a pair of rod-shaped control sticks (left and right), a rotary dial, a push button, various icons displayed on a touch panel screen, or a microphone for voice input, but is not particularly limited as long as it accepts input from the user. The control device 40 may be capable of transmitting control signals based on travel route information or an autonomous flight program (e.g., a GCS (Ground Control Station)) based on sensing.

[0038] In the system of this embodiment, a single control device 40 can simultaneously control the airframe 10 and the electric winch 30. This facilitates operations to control the position and attitude of the airframe 10 suspended by the cable 20. Furthermore, by performing work with the airframe 10 suspended by the cable 20, it is possible to prevent the airframe 10 from falling or becoming unable to be recovered within the facility. Furthermore, by suspending the airframe 10 by the cable 20, the thrust generating unit 11 of the airframe 10 does not need to generate an upward thrust greater than its own weight, reducing battery consumption and enabling extended use. Furthermore, there is no need to control the airframe 10 when hovering in the air, making it easier to control.

[0039] Although the present embodiment has been described above, the above embodiment is intended to facilitate understanding of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. The present invention may be modified or improved without departing from the spirit thereof, and equivalents thereof are also included in the present invention.

[0040] In the above embodiment, when the airframe is suspended by a tether, the thrust generating unit generates an upward force (thrust force DF2) that is smaller than the force of gravity G acting on the airframe, thereby reducing the burden on cable 20 (see FIG. 3), but this is not limiting, and the thrust generating unit may also be configured to generate a downward force on the airframe. Note that the thrust generating unit may also temporarily generate an upward force (thrust force DF2) that is larger than the force of gravity G acting on the airframe.

[0041] In the above embodiment, the autonomous control is described as being performed by the flight controller of the aircraft, but the present technology is not limited to such an example. That is, the autonomous flight control method is not limited to an example in which processing is performed on an edge device in the aircraft, but may be a method in which the above-described correction processing is performed remotely by another autonomous control device, the processing results are transmitted to the aircraft, and the drive unit is controlled based on the results. That is, the hardware that executes the autonomous flight control method is not particularly limited, and the above-described functional units may be executed by multiple hardware. The same applies to the control unit 32 of the electric winch 30.

[0042] Furthermore, the effects described herein are merely descriptive or exemplary and are not limiting. In other words, the technology according to the present disclosure may achieve other effects that will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the description of this specification, in addition to or in place of the above-described effects.

[0043] The following configurations also fall within the technical scope of the present disclosure. (Item 1) an electric winch connected to a cable that suspends the airframe having the thrust generating unit; a receiving unit that receives a control signal from a control device; a signal generating unit that generates a winch operation signal that instructs operation of the electric winch based on the operation signal received by the receiving unit, the control signal includes information on an ascending instruction or a descending instruction for the aircraft, The winch system is characterized in that the signal generating unit generates the winch operation signal including winding instruction information based on the ascending instruction, and generates the winch operation signal including payout instruction information based on the descending instruction. (Item 2) a support portion that supports the electric winch; The winch system according to claim 1, further comprising: a guide portion that guides the cable. (Item 3) 3. The winch system according to claim 1, wherein the control signal includes information for controlling the orientation of the aircraft. (Item 4) 3. The winch system according to claim 1, wherein the control signal includes information for controlling the parallel position of the aircraft. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 1. Winch System 10 aircraft 20 Cable 30 Electric winch 31 Receiving unit 32 Signal generation unit 40 Controls

Claims

1. an electric winch connected to a cable that suspends the airframe having the thrust generating unit; a receiving unit that receives a control signal from a control device; a signal generating unit that generates a winch operation signal that instructs operation of the electric winch based on the operation signal received by the receiving unit, the control signal includes information on an ascending instruction or a descending instruction for the aircraft, The winch system is characterized in that the signal generating unit generates the winch operation signal including winding instruction information based on the ascending instruction, and generates the winch operation signal including payout instruction information based on the descending instruction.

2. a support portion that supports the electric winch; The winch system according to claim 1 , further comprising: a guide portion that guides the cable.

3. The winch system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control signal includes information for controlling the orientation of the aircraft.

4. The winch system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control signal includes information for controlling the parallel position of the aircraft body.

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