Buoyant Propeller Guard for UAV Water Landing
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) face payload restrictions when equipped with floating functionality, limiting their ability to carry additional loads like cameras, and lack safety features to protect surrounding objects and people from high-speed propellers during water operations.
Innovation Solution
A propeller guard with a buoyant encircling part that surrounds the propellers and connects to the UAV, incorporating a raising and lowering mechanism to maintain the propeller and main body above water during landing and takeoff, utilizing a water landing sensor to control the mechanism's operation.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a conventional floating mechanism is added to enable water landing, then the UAV can take off and land on water, but the weight of the floating unit increases, limiting the payload capacity
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the propeller guard and floating unit into a single integrated structure. The encircling part that protects the propellers during rotation also serves as the buoyant floating unit during water landing, eliminating the need for separate floating mechanisms and reducing overall weight.
Solution Approach 2:
The encircling part performs multiple functions: it acts as a propeller guard during flight to protect surrounding objects from rotating propellers, and simultaneously serves as a buoyant floating unit during water landing and takeoff operations, maximizing structural efficiency.
2Reliability
If a propeller guard is added to protect surrounding objects and people from high-speed propellers, then safety is improved, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The propeller guard and floating unit are merged into a single encircling structure that performs both safety and flotation functions, reducing the number of components and simplifying the overall device architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The encircling part is designed to serve dual purposes: protecting the propellers and surrounding objects during flight, and providing buoyancy during water operations, thereby reducing the need for additional safety components.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enables UAVs to securely take off and land on water without payload restrictions while protecting surrounding objects and people from propellers, reducing weight and enhancing operational safety by integrating a propeller guard and float mechanism into a single system.
Implementation Method 1
the encircling part has a buoyant force for maintaining at least a part of the main body part and the propeller part above water
Data Source
AI summary
A propeller guard (200) according to the present disclosure is a propeller guard (200) for an unmanned aerial vehicle including a main body part (1) and a propeller part (2) and includes: an encircling part (210) that extends around the propeller part (2) and protects the propeller part (2); and a connection part (220) that connects the main body part (1) and the encircling part (210), wherein the encircling part (210) has a buoyant force for maintaining at least a part of the main body part (1) and the propeller part (2) above water.