Crop Transport UAV Control for Mid-Air Package Pickup
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a need for efficient transportation of harvested crops using unmanned aerial vehicles without the need for ground infrastructure, as existing systems are limited by the weight capacity and landing requirements of traditional transport vehicles.
Innovation Solution
An unmanned aerial vehicle system equipped with a flight device, controller, communication device, and support structure that allows for autonomous flight to and from agricultural machines, enabling the acquisition and transport of harvested crops without landing, with the capability to determine package weight and transport suitability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If traditional ground-based transport vehicles are used, then landing infrastructure is required, but this increases device complexity and reduces operational flexibility
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the landing function from the transport system by using an unmanned aerial vehicle to acquire harvested crops from the agricultural machine in mid-air. The acquisition device is detachably connected to the UAV, allowing the UAV to pick up and transport crop packages without landing on the ground, thereby eliminating the need for landing infrastructure and improving operational flexibility.
2Ease of operation
If the acquisition device is detachably connected to the unmanned aerial vehicle, then the UAV can acquire harvested crops from the agricultural machine, but this increases device complexity
Solution Approach 1:
The acquisition device is designed with a detachable connection system that allows it to be dynamically connected to and disconnected from the unmanned aerial vehicle. This dynamic connection enables the acquisition device to be attached when crop acquisition is needed and detached when not needed, providing operational flexibility while managing device complexity through on-demand deployment.
3Adaptability or versatility
If the unmanned aerial vehicle flies to acquire harvested crops without landing, then ground infrastructure is not needed, but this requires precise positioning and control capabilities
Solution Approach 1:
The controller of the unmanned aerial vehicle is designed to perform multiple functions: it controls the flight device for navigation and hovering, manages the acquisition device for crop collection, and coordinates with the agricultural machine for synchronized operations. This multi-functional controller reduces overall system complexity by integrating positioning, control, and acquisition management into a single control unit.
4Reliability
If the support structure is separated from the unmanned aerial vehicle when transporting packages, then payload capacity is reduced, but this increases flight safety and reliability
Solution Approach 1:
The support structure is designed to be dynamically separated from the unmanned aerial vehicle during package transport. The controller determines when to separate the support structure based on flight conditions and package characteristics. This dynamic separation improves flight safety and reliability by reducing weight and complexity during transport, while the payload capacity is optimized by only carrying necessary components during specific operational phases.
Data Source
AI summary
An unmanned aerial vehicle that transports harvested crops harvested from a field, includes a flight device to cause the unmanned aerial vehicle to fly, a controller configured or programmed to control operation of the flight device, a communication device to receive package position information indicating a first position where a target package for transport containing the harvested crops is located, and package weight information, and a support device to support the target package. The controller is configured or programmed to determine, based on the package weight information, whether the target package can be transported to a second position different from the first position, and when doing so, control the flight device to cause the unmanned aerial vehicle to fly to the first position, cause the support device to support the target package, and control the flight device to cause the unmanned aerial vehicle to fly to the second position.