UAV Payload Receiver With Tether Engagement for Automated Handoffs
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing UAV systems face delays and inefficiencies in payload delivery and retrieval due to the need for human intervention, such as waiting for a designated person to secure the payload, leading to undesirable waiting times and energy expenditure.
Innovation Solution
A payload receiver apparatus with a base, extending member, and tether engager that allows for automated pickup and delivery of payloads by the UAV, including a payload platform and tether system for secure handling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a designated person manually secures the payload to the UAV, then the payload can be securely attached, but the system experiences undesirable waiting time and delays
Solution Approach 1:
The payload receiver apparatus enables the UAV to automatically secure payloads without human intervention. The automated mechanism includes a receiver that autonomously captures the payload and a tether engager that automatically guides and secures the tether, allowing the system to serve itself rather than requiring a designated person for attachment
Solution Approach 2:
The payload receiver apparatus is pre-positioned at the delivery location before the UAV arrives. The automated receiver and tether engager are ready in advance to immediately capture and secure the payload upon the UAV's arrival, eliminating the need for waiting time associated with manual setup or human intervention
2Reliability
If the UAV waits in hover mode for the designated person to arrive, then the payload can be secured, but the UAV experiences energy expenditure and delivery delays
Solution Approach 1:
The automated payload receiver apparatus allows the UAV to immediately secure the payload upon arrival without needing to wait for human intervention. The self-service mechanism eliminates the energy-consuming hover wait by enabling autonomous payload capture and tether engagement
Solution Approach 2:
The payload receiver apparatus is prepared in advance at the delivery location, with the receiver and tether engager ready to immediately secure the payload. This preliminary preparation eliminates the need for the UAV to hover and wait, thereby conserving energy
3Ease of operation
If manual payload securing is used, then the process is simple, but the overall delivery system experiences undesirable delays
Solution Approach 1:
The automated payload receiver apparatus performs the payload securing operation autonomously without requiring manual intervention. The system maintains operational simplicity through automated design while dramatically improving delivery speed by eliminating waiting time for human arrival and manual securing
Data Source
AI summary
A payload receiver apparatus including a base configured to receive a payload suspended from an uncrewed aerial vehicle (UAV), an extending member having an upper end positioned above the base, a first tether engager that extends in a first direction from the extending member, wherein the base includes a payload platform positioned below the first tether end of the channel and configured to receive a payload thereon, wherein the first tether engager is adapted to guide a tether having a first end attached to the UAV and a second end attached to a payload coupling apparatus to a position above the payload platform.