Apparatus and method for recovering and launching unmanned aerial vehicle

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10259594-B2
Application number	US-201615372287-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 7, 2016
Priority date	Dec 23, 2015
Publication date	Apr 16, 2019
Grant date	Apr 16, 2019

Abstract

Provided is an apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle. The apparatus for recovering and launching the unmanned aerial vehicle includes a main body that includes a storage space in which the unmanned aerial vehicle is stored, an inclined platform that forms an inclined surface which is connected between a fixed bar fixed in the main body and a moving bar moved to an opened upper portion of the main body and collides with the unmanned aerial vehicle induced to approach a side of the main body, a band member of which one end is connected to the moving bar and the other end is rolled up in a roll shape and stored in the storage space of the main body, and a driving motor that rotationally drives a rotor circumscribed with the band member in a normal direction or reverse direction, so that the moving bar is moved with respect to the fixed bar, wherein the inclined surface is formed by unfolding the inclined platform, the unmanned aerial vehicle colliding with the inclined surface is recovered to the storage space, and then the inclined platform is folded.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle, comprising:
a main body that includes a storage space in which the unmanned aerial vehicle is stored;
an inclined platform that forms an inclined surface which is connected between a fixed bar fixed in the main body and a moving bar moved to an opened upper portion of the main body and collides with the unmanned aerial vehicle induced to approach a side of the main body;
a band member of which one end is connected to the moving bar and the other end is rolled up in a roll shape and stored in the storage space of the main body; and
a driving motor that rotationally drives a rotor circumscribed with the band member in a normal direction or reverse direction, so that the moving bar is moved with respect to the fixed bar,
wherein the inclined surface is formed by unfolding the inclined platform, the unmanned aerial vehicle colliding with the inclined surface is recovered to the storage space, and then the inclined platform is folded.

2. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the band member is made of an elastic material.

3. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the inclined platform includes a plurality of closed-loop type elastic bands of which both ends are respectively connected to the fixed bar and the moving bar.

4. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the inclined platform includes an elastic plate of which both ends are respectively connected to the fixed bar and the moving bar, and through which a plurality of slits penetrate.

5. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the band member includes a rack type band that forms a gear surface gear-engaged with the rotor including a circular gear having a sawtooth portion formed on an outer circumferential surface thereof.

6. The apparatus for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the band member includes a belt type band that forms a rubbed surface circumscribed with the rotor including a circular wheel having a friction surface formed on an outer circumferential surface thereof.

7. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the main body includes a guide stand that guides a linear motion of the band member by restraining both left and right boundaries of the band member.

8. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the main body includes a guide inclined plate that is installed to be inclined at a predetermined angle in front of the rotor and guides the band member together with the moving bar in an oblique direction.

9. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 8 , further comprising:
a contact bar that is provided between the guide inclined plate and the rotor, and brought into contact with the band member to achieve direction conversion while the band member passes through the contact bar.

10. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the main body includes a rolled portion in which the end of the band member rolled up in a roll shape is accommodated.

11. The apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 , wherein the main body includes a float that is floatable on water surface to recovery and launch the unmanned aerial vehicle and the float is movable in water after recovering and launching the unmanned aerial vehicle.

12. A method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle, comprising:
opening a cover of a main body so that a storage space of the main body in which the unmanned aerial vehicle is accommodated is exposed;
making a driving motor operation-stand by, the driving motor rotationally driving an inclined platform which is connected at its one end to a fixed bar fixed in the main body and connected at the other end to a moving bar moved to an opened upper portion of the main body and a rotor circumscribed with a band member which is connected at its one end to the moving bar;
unfolding the inclined platform by a normal direction rotational driving of the driving motor so that an inclined surface with which the unmanned aerial vehicle induced to approach a side of the main body collides is formed; and
folding the inclined platform by a reverse direction rotational driving of the driving motor so that the unmanned aerial vehicle colliding with the inclined surface is returned to the storage space.

13. The method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 12 , wherein, in the making the driving motor operation-stand by, the other end of the band member connected at its one end to the moving bar is rolled up in a roll shape and stored in a rolled portion provided in the main body.

14. The method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 12 , wherein the unfolding is performed by a normal direction rotational driving of the rotor including a circular gear having a sawtooth portion formed on an outer circumferential surface thereof circumscribed with the a rack type band including a gear surface formed thereon.

15. The method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 12 , wherein the unfolding is performed by a normal direction rotational driving of the rotor including a circular wheel having a friction surface formed on an outer circumferential surface thereof circumscribed with a belt type band including a rubbed surface formed thereon.

16. The method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 12 , wherein, in the unfolding, the band member is linearly moved by a guide stand for restraining both left and right boundaries of the band member at the time of a rotational driving of the driving motor, and obliquely moved by a guide inclined plate installed to be inclined at a predetermined angle to the main body.

17. The method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 16 , wherein the band member is subjected to bending deformation to achieve direction conversion by a contact bar installed between a section in which the band member is linearly moved by the guide stand and a section in which the band member is obliquely moved and guided by the guide inclined plate.

18. The method for recovering an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 12 , wherein a location of the unmanned aerial vehicle taken off from the main body and flies in an unmanned manner is confirmed by a GPS signal, the unmanned aerial vehicle of which location is confirmed is induced to approach the main body by an RF signal, and the unmanned aerial vehicle induced to approach the main body is controlled to be induced to collide with the inclined platform confirmed by an optical means within a short range.

19. Submarine comprising the apparatus for recovering and launching an unmanned aerial vehicle of claim 1 .

Assignees

• Postech Acad Ind Found

Inventors

• Yu Son Cheol
• Pyo Ju Hyun
• Joe Han Gil
• Cho Hyeon Woo
• Kim Byeong Jin

Classifications

• B64F1/025 Primary

  using decelerating or arresting beds · CPC title

• B64F1/007

  Helicopter portable landing pads · CPC title

• B63G8/001

  Underwater vessels adapted for special purposes, e.g. unmanned underwater vessels; Equipment specially adapted therefor, e.g. docking stations (self-propelled or direction controlled diving chambers with mechanical link to a base B63C11/42) · CPC title

• B63G2008/002

  unmanned · CPC title

• B64D45/08

  optical · CPC title