UAV Payload Interface With Sensor Feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
There is a lack of a unified, industry-standard interface for heavy-duty drones that allows for the secure attachment and efficient management of industrial tools or payloads, including standardized physical, electrical, and logical interfaces, and fails to account for the impact of additional payloads on flight control units.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a unified generic tool or payload interface for heavy-duty drones, featuring a human-machine interface for payload-flight-controller tuning, mechanical, electromechanical, or magnetic connecting elements, sensor units for measuring physical properties, and a control unit for communicating these measurements to the flight control unit, along with power electronics and a logical interface for triggering payload functions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a unified generic tool or payload interface is implemented for heavy-duty drones, then adaptability and versatility are improved, but device complexity increases due to the need for standardized physical, electrical, and logical interfaces
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a universal interface system that combines mechanical connecting elements, electrical contacts, and logical communication protocols into a single standardized attachment mechanism. This allows different tools and payloads to be interchangeably mounted on heavy-duty drones while maintaining consistent electrical power supply, data communication, and flight control integration across all payload types.
Solution Approach 2:
The interface is divided into distinct functional modules: mechanical connecting elements for physical attachment, sensor units for measuring physical properties, control units for logical interface management, and electrical energy supply units. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently while working together as an integrated system.
2Reliability
If sensor units and control units are integrated into the interface, then flight control is improved by accounting for physical effects, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The control unit acts as an intermediary between the sensor units and the flight control system. It receives raw measurements from sensors (such as weight, center of gravity, moment of inertia), processes this data, and transmits the processed information to the flight control unit. This intermediary layer simplifies the overall system architecture by centralizing the data processing function within the interface itself.
Solution Approach 2:
The interface system continuously monitors physical properties of attached payloads through sensor units and provides real-time feedback to the flight control system. This feedback loop enables the flight control system to dynamically adjust flight parameters based on the actual payload characteristics, improving flight safety and control precision.
3Ease of operation
If a standardized physical interface with connecting elements is provided, then ease of operation is improved for payload attachment, but manufacturing precision requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The mechanical connecting elements are designed as standardized interfaces that can accommodate various payload types through a common attachment mechanism. This universality simplifies the attachment process for operators while requiring precise manufacturing of the standardized components to ensure proper fit and secure connection across different payload variations.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3a~3d
AI summary
We propose interface (8) for attaching a tool or a payload (9) to an Unmanned Aerial Vehicle, UAV (1), comprising: on a tool or payload side of the interface (8), at least one first connecting element (8a) for connecting a tool or payload (9) to the interface (8) on said tool or payload side thereof; on a vehicle side of the interface (8), at least one second connecting element (8b) for connecting the interface (8) to an UAV (1) on said vehicle side thereof; at least one sensor unit (8c), which sensor unit (8c) is devised for measuring at least one physical property of a tool or payload (9), when said tool or payload (9) is connected to the interface (8); and at least one control unit (8d) in operative connection with said at least one sensor unit (8c), which control unit (8d) is devised for communicating with a flight control unit (6) of the UAV (1) for providing said flight control unit (6) with data related to said measured at least one physical property.