Rotorcraft Flight Control Prioritization Under Limited Thrust Margin
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Solution Overview
Problem
Unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), particularly multi-rotor VTOL aircraft, face challenges in prioritizing attitude control over vertical control during emergency conditions when power is limited, as they need to ensure safe landing without damaging the aircraft.
Innovation Solution
A flight control system that integrates attitude control and electrical power systems to determine thrust margins for each rotor, allowing for the prioritization of attitude control by generating an upper limit to allowable vertical control, ensuring sufficient attitude control capability while maintaining acceptable vertical control.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If power is allocated equally to all rotors, then each rotor receives sufficient power for basic operation, but attitude control capability deteriorates during emergency conditions
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the power distribution system into multiple independent power sources (first power source and second power source), each capable of independently controlling power delivery to different rotor groups. This segmentation enables selective power allocation where one power source can prioritize attitude control rotors while another maintains vertical control, resolving the contradiction between reliable safe landing and controllable attitude during emergencies
Solution Approach 2:
The patent implements dynamic power allocation through thrust margin determination and prioritization logic that continuously adjusts power distribution based on flight conditions. The system dynamically identifies which rotors require more power for attitude control versus vertical control at any given moment, allowing the rotorcraft to maintain attitude control capability while ensuring safe landing even when total power is limited
2Speed
If maximum power is allocated to vertical control, then ascent and descent performance is improved, but attitude control capability deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically determines thrust margins for each rotor by comparing available power from separate power sources against required power for current thrust states. This dynamic assessment allows real-time optimization where vertical control can receive maximum power when needed for ascent/descent while attitude control rotors are simultaneously protected by dedicated power source allocation, preventing deterioration of attitude control capability
Solution Approach 2:
The patent establishes preliminary power allocation architecture with separate power sources configured to prioritize attitude control rotors. This preliminary setup ensures that before power limitations occur, the system is already structured to protect attitude control capability, allowing vertical control to receive maximum power without compromising the reliability of attitude control during emergency conditions
Data Source
AI summary
Methods, apparatus, systems, and articles of manufacture are disclosed for flight control prioritization. An example apparatus includes a thrust state determiner to determine a first thrust margin between a first limit of first available power for first rotors of a rotorcraft and a first thrust state associated with the first rotors, determine a second thrust margin between a second limit of second available power for second rotors of the rotorcraft and a second thrust state associated with the second rotors, and identify the first thrust margin or the second thrust margin as a selected thrust margin based on a vertical control profile of the rotorcraft, and a command generator to determine a first vertical control command based on the selected thrust margin and a second vertical control command, the second vertical control command being executed by the rotorcraft, and control the rotorcraft based on the first vertical control command.