FUEL-ELECTRIC HYBRID MULTI-AXIS ROTOR-TYPE UNMANNED AERIAL VEHICLE

Abstract

The present invention discloses a fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle which relates to the field of unmanned aerial vehicles. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle includes an unmanned aerial vehicle frame, a lifting rotor, a posture adjusting rotor, a fuel engine, a motor, a fuel tank and a power supply device; the fuel engine, the motor, the fuel tank and the power supply device are mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle frame; the fuel tank supplies fuel to the fuel engine; the fuel engine is configured to drive the lifting rotor; and the motor is powered by the power supply device and configured to drive the posture adjusting rotor. A main purpose is to enable the multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle having a large-load and long-duration flight function to quickly and precisely adjust the flight direction and flight speed.

Claims

1. A fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle wherein comprises an unmanned aerial vehicle frame, a lifting rotor, a posture adjusting rotor, a fuel engine, a motor, a fuel tank and a power supply device; the fuel engine, the motor, the fuel tank and the power supply device are mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle frame; the fuel tank supplies fuel to the fuel engine; the fuel engine is configured to drive the lifting rotor; and the motor is powered by the power supply device and configured to drive the posture adjusting rotor.

2. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the posture adjusting rotor comprises a fixing portion and blades, and a longitudinal section of the blades is a side-tilted V shape; or the posture adjusting rotor comprises a first upper rotor and a first lower rotor that are coaxially disposed, blades of the first upper rotor and the first lower rotor are oppositely disposed and have opposite spiral directions such that the corresponding first upper rotor and first lower rotor form a constriction.

3. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the lifting rotor comprises a second upper rotor and a second lower rotor which are coaxially disposed, spiral directions of the blades of the second upper rotor and the second lower rotor are the same, the second upper rotor and the second lower rotor rotate in opposite directions.

4. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the power supply device comprises a generator that is drivingly connected to the fuel engine and electrically connected to the motor.

5. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the fuel tank is an annular fuel tank, the generator is disposed in an inner ring of the fuel tank, an output shaft of the fuel engine is coaxially with a transmission shaft of the generator, the external mounting platform for mounting the external device is arranged below the unmanned aerial vehicle frame, and the external mounting platform is disposed below the annular fuel tank.

6. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 4, wherein the power supply device comprises a rechargeable battery, the generator powered the rechargeable battery, and the rechargeable battery supplies power to the motor.

7. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein comprises 2n posture adjusting rotors, wherein n is a natural number, and n2, and the posture adjusting rotors are disposed at vertices of a regular 2n-gon; the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle comprises one lifting rotor, and the lifting rotor is disposed on a mid-perpendicular of the regular 2n-gon.

8. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein an external mounting platform for mounting the external device is disposed below the unmanned aerial vehicle frame.

9. The fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the unmanned aerial vehicle frame is pivotally connected with a side arm having a locking function, and the motor is fixed on the side arm.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0022] FIG. 1 is a schematic structural view of a first embodiment of a fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle of the present invention;

[0023] FIG. 2 is a top view of FIG. 1;

[0024] FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 2;

[0025] FIG. 4 is a schematic structural view of a second embodiment of a fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle of the present invention;

[0026] FIG. 5 is a top view of FIG. 4;

[0027] FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 5.

[0028] In the figures, 1 represents a housing, 2 represents a lifting rotor, 21 represents a second upper rotor, 22 represents a second lower rotor, 3 represents a posture adjusting rotor, 31 represents a first upper rotor, 32 represents a first lower rotor, 4 represents a fuel engine, 5 represents a generator, 6 represents a fuel tank, 7 represents an engine bracket, 8 represents a motor, 9 represents an external mounting platform, 10 represents a side arm, 11 represents a main support, 12 represents a pivot shaft, 13 represents a battery.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] Specific implementations of the present invention are described in detail below with reference to the figures and embodiments, but the following embodiments are only intended to illustrate the present invention in detail not to limit the scope of the present invention in any manner.

Embodiment 1

[0030] a fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle, as shown in FIGS. 1-3, comprises an unmanned aerial vehicle frame, a lifting rotor 2, a posture adjusting rotor 3, a fuel engine 4, a motor 8, a fuel tank 6 and a power supply device; the fuel engine 4, the generator 5, the fuel tank 6 and the power supply device are mounted on the unmanned aerial vehicle frame. The fuel tank 6 supplies fuel to the fuel engine 4, generally, a fuel inlet pipe of the fuel engine 4 is disposed at a bottom of the fuel tank 6; the fuel engine 4 is used to drive the lifting rotor 2, and generally, the lifting rotor 2 is connected with an output shaft of the fuel engine 4 via gear transmission; a motor 8 is powered by the power supply device and used to drive the posture adjusting rotor 3.

[0031] In the present embodiment, the unmanned aerial vehicle frame comprises a housing 1, an engine bracket 7, a side arm 10 and a main support 11. Four posture adjusting rotors 3 are provided. The four posture adjusting rotors 3 are disposed at the vertices of a regular quadrilateral (i.e., n=2). Only one lifting rotor 2 is provided, and the lifting rotor 2 is disposed on a mid-perpendicular line of a regular quadrilateral, i.e., the rotation axis of the lifting rotor 2 coincides with the mid-perpendicular line of the regular quadrilateral. In FIG. 1, a height of the lifting rotor 2 is higher than a height of the posture adjusting rotor 3. In order to adapt for the positional relationship between the lifting rotor 2 and the posture adjusting rotor 3, the housing 1 is annular, one end of the engine bracket 7 is connected inside the housing 1, and the fuel engine 4 is mounted on the engine bracket 7 and fixed at a center of the housing 1 via the engine bracket 7; the housing 1 is fixed with four side arms 10 outside respectively so that the posture adjusting rotor 3 is disposed at vertices of the regular quadrilateral via the motor 8. Generally, the motor 8 is mounted on the side arms 10, and the posture adjusting rotor 3 is mounted on the output shaft of the motor 8. One end of the main support 11 is fixed to a bottom surface of the housing 1, and the other end is used to lift the engine bracket 7.

[0032] In the present embodiment, in order to facilitate mounting an external device, an external mounting platform 9 for mounting the external device is disposed below the unmanned aerial vehicle frame. The external mounting platform 9 may be mounted as needed and equipped with a variety of auxiliary devices to meet the needs of different scenarios, for example, a fire extinguishing kit or a pressurized spraying device can be equipped for fire fighting in a space outside in high-rise buildings. As shown in FIG. 1, the external mounting platform 9 is mounted on a bottom surface of the main support 11. This facilitates securing an external device below the external mounting platform 9 for convenient use.

[0033] In the present embodiment, the power supply device comprises a battery 13 electrically connected to the motor 8. When a model of the battery 13 is selected, a balance between a capacity and a weight of the battery 13 should be achieved as much as possible. In FIG. 3, the battery 13 is disposed in the main support 11.

[0034] An operation process of the above-mentioned fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle is as follows: the fuel tank 6 is filled up with fuel oil, the fuel engine 4 takes fuel oil from the fuel tank 6 and outputs rotary power to drive the lifting rotor 2 to rotate, and the lifting rotor 2 functions to make the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle rise, fall or get airborne; the power supply device supplies power to the motor 8, and the motor 8 outputs rotary power to drive the posture adjusting rotor 3 to rotate; the posture adjusting rotor 3 functions to adjust a flight posture and flight speed of the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle to achieve a purpose of adjusting the flight direction and flight speed. Due to a large thrust of the fuel engine and the quick start and stop of the motor, the multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle with a large-load and long-time flight function utilizing foregoing characteristics can quickly and accurately adjust the flight direction and flight speed. When an external device need to be mounted, the external mounting platform 9 may be mounted on the main support, and then the external device is fixed on the external mounting platform 9.

Embodiment 2

[0035] A fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle, as shown in FIG. 1-3, serving as another implementation of Embodiment 1, the power supply device comprises a generator 5, and the generator 5 is drivingly connected to the fuel engine 4. As such, the fuel engine 4 drives the generator 5 to generate electricity while powering the lifting rotor 2, and the generator 5 is electrically connected to the motor 8. In the present embodiment, the fuel tank 6 is an annular fuel tank, the generator 5 is disposed in an inner ring of the fuel tank 6, an output shaft of the fuel engine 4 is connected with a transmission shaft of the generator 5 through a coupling, and the lifting rotor 2 is mounted on the output shaft on the fuel engine 4, that is, the fuel engine 4, the generator 5 and the primary rotor 2 are coaxial, the external mounting platform 9 for mounting the external device is arranged below the unmanned aerial vehicle frame, and the external mounting platform 9 is disposed below the fuel tank 6. In this way, the thickness of the fuel tank and the generator can be made coincide, and a thickness of the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle can be reduced. A center of gravity of the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle is on a central axis of the unmanned aerial vehicle and below a center of the central axis of the unmanned aerial vehicle. In this way, when the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle loses power, the external mounting platform will land first and can protect the fuel tank.

Embodiment 3

[0036] A fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle, as shown in FIG. 1-3, serve as a further improvement of Embodiment 1 or 2. The power supply device comprises a generator 5 and a battery 13, wherein the battery 13 is a rechargeable battery, and the generator 5 is drivingly connected to the fuel engine 4. Reference may be specifically made to Embodiment 2. The generator 5 charges the battery 13, and the battery 13 supplies power to the motor 8. Specifically, the generator 5 and the battery 13 may be connected to an input end of a dual power supply switching system, and output ends of the dual power supply switching system are electrically connected to four generators 5, respectively. It is also possible that the generator 5 is electrically connected to the battery 13 to form a charging circuit, and the battery 13 is electrically connected to the four generators 5, respectively, to form a discharge circuit. As such, after fuel is exhausted, the rechargeable battery may act as a backup power supply to drive the posture adjusting rotor 3 to rotate to reduce the descending speed. The battery 13 should automatically switch in linkage to power the posture adjusting rotor 3 to maintain a balance and a descending speed not greater than a maximum allowable designed speed when the lifting rotor 2 of the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle loses power.

Embodiment 4

[0037] a fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle, as shown in FIG. 1-3, is considered as a further improvement to the Embodiment 1, 2 or 3. The unmanned aerial vehicle frame is pivotally connected with side arm 10 having a locking function, corresponding to FIG. 1, the main support 11 is provided with a pivot hole, one end of the side arm 10 is provided with a pivot shaft 12, the pivot shaft 12 is pivotally mounted in the pivot hole, and the motor 8 is fixed to the side arm 10. A locking function of the side arm 10 and the main support 11 is realized by providing pin holes on sides of the pivot hole and the pivot shaft 12 to mount pins, wherein one pin hole is disposed when the side arm 10 retracts under the housing 1, and a pin is inserted into the pin hole to lock the side arm 10 in a retracted state, and wherein the other pin hole is disposed when the side arm 10 is in a deployed state in operation, and the pin is inserted into the pin hole to lock the side arm 10 in the deployed state.

[0038] It should be appreciated that in order to enhance the flight stability of the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle, the number of the posture adjusting rotors 3 may be set to 2n, wherein n is a natural number, and such as six-axis, eight-axis and other even number axis, to increase a operating power. These posture adjusting rotors 3 are disposed at vertices of a regular 2n-gon; the number of the lifting rotor 2 is not limited to one, but a center of the lifting rotor 2 and centers of the posture adjusting rotors 3 should be located as much as possible on a perpendicular where a center of gravity of the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle lies.

Embodiment 5

[0039] A fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle, as shown in FIGS. 4-6, is considered as a further improvement of any of Embodiments 1-4. The present embodiment differs from Embodiments 1-4 as follows. In the present embodiment, the posture adjusting rotor 3 comprises a fixing portion and blades, and the posture adjusting rotor 3 may also be disposed such that a longitudinal section of the blades is a side-tilted V shape; or, the posture adjusting rotor 3 comprises a first upper rotor 31 and a first lower rotor 32 that are coaxially disposed, and the blades of the first upper rotor 31 and the first lower rotor 32 are oppositely disposed and have opposite spiral directions so that the corresponding first upper rotor 31 and first lower rotor 32 form a constriction. Specifically, the first upper rotor 31 and the first lower rotor 32 may be disposed adjacent to each other, or may be respectively disposed on upper and lower sides of the side arm 10, as shown in FIG. 6. The blades of the first upper rotor 31 and the first lower rotor 32 are generally in same size such that projections of the first upper rotor 31 and the first lower rotor 32 on the ground coincide, but spiral directions of the blades of the rotors are opposite. In this way, when the posture adjusting rotors rotate, a wind propelling effect is better, and the fuel-electric hybrid multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle can change directions quickly and fly at a fast speed.

[0040] In the present embodiment, the lifting rotor 2 may also be disposed comprising a second upper rotor 21 and a second lower rotor 22 which are coaxially disposed, and the spiral directions of the blades of the second upper rotor 21 and the second lower rotor 22 are the same. Upon operation, the second upper rotor 21 and the second lower rotor 22 rotate in opposite directions. A structure for realizing opposite rotation directions of the second upper rotor 21 and the second lower rotor 22 can be found in Chinese patent document No. CN104823589A relating to a transmission mechanism for implementing coaxial forward/reverse rotation as described in Background. As such, the load is increased and a gyro effect caused by a high torque is avoided.

[0041] The above-mentioned multi-axis rotor-type unmanned aerial vehicle may be used for high-rise building fire extinguishing, high-altitude radar search, launching air-to-ground missiles, emergency large-flux wireless signal relay, airborne line inspection, air cargo transportation and other tasks.

[0042] The present invention has been described in detail with reference to the figures and embodiments. However, those skilled in the art can understand that without departing from the spirit of the invention, various specific parameters in the above embodiments may be modified to form a plurality of specific embodiments, which are common variations of the present invention, and are not detailed one by one herein.