UAV Base Module Bays for Autonomous Launch, Recovery, and Charging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current UAV management systems require manual micromanagement, including individual flight path programming for each UAV, and lack effective storage solutions that protect UAVs from adverse conditions and ensure safe, efficient operation.
Innovation Solution
A base module system that integrates with UAVs to automate flight planning, power management, and data collection, providing environmental protection and defensive shielding, while enabling autonomous takeoff and landing assistance.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If multiple UAVs use a common home base for storage and charging, then resource efficiency is improved, but collision risk and confusion increase
Solution Approach 1:
The base station is segmented into multiple independent launch/recovery bays, each capable of independently managing a specific UAV. This segmentation allows multiple UAVs to share the same physical structure without interfering with each other's launch and recovery operations, eliminating collision risks while maintaining resource efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
Each UAV is nested within its own dedicated bay at the base station, with bays configured to receive and hold specific UAVs. This nesting arrangement allows multiple UAVs to coexist at the base station without physical interference, as each UAV occupies its own isolated space for launch and recovery operations.
2Reliability
If permanent home base spots are assigned to multiple UAVs, then each UAV has dedicated storage, but space is wasted when UAVs are out flying
Solution Approach 1:
The base station bays are designed to be dynamically reassigned between different UAVs based on real-time operational status. When a UAV is out flying, its bay can be immediately made available for another UAV, creating a dynamic allocation system that maximizes space utilization while maintaining dedicated storage capability when needed.
Solution Approach 2:
The system allows for the temporary discarding of a UAV from its assigned bay when it deploys for flight, and subsequently recovering the bay for reuse by another UAV. This discard-and-recover mechanism enables flexible space management that prevents permanent reservation of bays, maximizing overall space utilization efficiency.
3Ease of operation
If UAVs have open access to home base, then ease of operation is improved, but protection from adverse conditions is reduced
Solution Approach 1:
Each bay is equipped with a movable cover that acts as a flexible protective shell. This cover can be easily deployed to enclose the bay and protect the UAV from environmental conditions such as rain, dust, and extreme temperatures, while still allowing for convenient access when the UAV needs to be launched or recovered.
Solution Approach 2:
The movable covers on the bays provide beforehand protection against adverse environmental conditions. By having the cover in place before the UAV is exposed to the elements, the system preemptively shields the UAV from potential damage while maintaining operational convenience when the cover is opened for access.
4Ease of operation
If home base is visible and accessible, then operational transparency is improved, but concealment in defensive situations is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The base station is segmented into multiple bays, each capable of independent operation. This segmentation allows the system to maintain operational transparency through individual bay access while providing defensive concealment by allowing bays to be covered when not in use, creating a balance between visibility for operation and hidden protection for security.
Data Source
AI summary
A base module may be used to receive and house one or more unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) via one or more cavities. The base module receives commands from a manager device and identifies a flight plan that allows a UAV to execute the received commands. The base module transfers the flight plan to the UAV and frees the UAV. Once the UAV returns, the base module once again receives it. The base module then receives sensor data from the UAV from one or more sensors onboard the UAV, and optionally receives additional information describing its flight and identifying success or failure of the flight plan. The base module transmits the sensor data and optionally the additional information to a storage medium locally or remotely accessible by the manager device.